The end of the year is always a good time to take stock of what has happened and what has been achieved, but also to analyse the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead in the coming year. It is no different in the world of IP.
2024 belonged to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises
2024 was marked by significant EU support for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, which had the opportunity to significantly strengthen their IP rights protection thanks, among other things, to the continuation of the SME Fund scheme, including the IP SCAN service.
The EU funding schemes were extremely popular and the pool of funds ran out two months before the deadline. Interestingly, applications from Polish companies accounted for a significant percentage of the total number of applications, placing Poland among the top five Member States.
The great success of the scheme makes it likely that the European Commission will allocate new funds for its operation next year.
Design across the European Union and new definitions
On 20 September 2024, an amendment to the Act of 4 February 1994 on copyright and related rights came into force, the main purpose of which was to transpose into Polish law the Directive on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market and amending Directives 96/9/EC and 2001/29/EC.
Among other things, the new act introduced:
- Royalties for making works available online
- Guidelines for the calculation of remuneration
- The right of the author to be informed of revenues where the remuneration depends on the amount of revenue generated by the use of the work
On 18 November 2024, new EU design legislation (i.e. EU Regulation 2024/2822 and EU Directive 2024/2823) was published in the Official Journal of the EU.
The changes in this regard have changed the very concept of Community design, which from 1 May 2025 will be referred to as European Union design. This is undoubtedly a unification in relation to the existing term ‘European Union trademark’.
The amendment also changed the very definition of design, stating that it is “the appearance of the whole or a part of a product resulting from the features, in particular the lines, contours, colours, shape, texture and/or materials, of the product itself and/or of its decoration, including the movement, transition or any other sort of animation of those features”. The product itself is defined as: “any industrial or handicraft item, other than a computer program, regardless of whether it is embodied in a physical object or materialises in a non-physical form”.
There is no longer a requirement for visibility, which means that design features do not need to be visible during use of the product itself. This requirement is reserved only for component parts of a complex product that need to remain visible during normal use.
The increasing use of 3D printing technology has also led to a provision being introduced to regulate it. The creation, downloading, copying and making available of any medium or software which records the protected design for the purpose of making, including by 3D printing, a product that infringes the design will be tantamount to using the design. And this will require authorisation.
In addition, the amendment introduced the possibility of informing the public that the appearance of the product is protected, by placing the letter D enclosed within a circle on the product.
What lies ahead for IP in 2025
All these new regulations are only part of the legislative changes adopted this year. The effectiveness of the new solutions will be tested in 2025, but not all the work has been completed.
A thorough revision of the Industrial Property Act remains a challenge. The draft law currently under consideration is the first comprehensive attempt at change in this area in 20 years. The challenge is to significantly simplify the procedure, which would help reduce the waiting time for obtaining exclusive rights and create faster and more user-friendly procedures.
This amendment to the regulation on designs will apply from 1 May 2025, while the directive should be implemented by Member States by 9 December 2027. The reform aims to modernise and further harmonise design law.
The growing functionality of AI-based tools will undoubtedly increase their popularity among businesses. However, despite the wave of optimism surrounding artificial intelligence, it is important not to forget the dangers that lurk for both private and commercial users. AI tools require proper control, including the development of appropriate regulations and guidelines regarding the possibility and extent of their use by employees or subcontractors. Only through well-defined procedures will it be possible to reduce or eliminate the serious risk of infringements.
One thing is certain: we have an exciting and challenging 12 months ahead of us and we look forward to it.
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