Protecting Shapes And Colours: Trade Marks For MedTech

A trade mark can be the most valuable asset of a business. When most people think of a trade mark they typically think of a word or a logo. But trade mark protection is not limited to words and logos. Protection can be obtained for shape, colour, motion, sounds, smells, tastes or even the texture of a product.

The ability to obtain trade mark protection for the shape and colour of distinctive products is of particular interest to the MedTech industry, where the shape and colour of medical devices is often of particular value.

Patents usually last for 20 years and registered designs for 25 years. Trade marks, on the other hand, have the potential to last forever and to provide the owner with monopoly protection of unlimited duration. For this reason, the value of a trade mark should not be underestimated, given the potential to protect the defining features of a product (for example, a distinctive shape or colour combination), long after patent or design rights