3D Printing: Addressing the New Dimension in Brand and IP Infringement Jeffrey G. Sheldon Partner Leech Tishman Fuscaldo & Lampl LLP Brittany Shaw Strategic Services Manager MarkMonitor Thomas J. Peistrup General Counsel Tre Milano, LLC
Agenda 3D Printing Landscape Adoption: Enterprise and Consumer Impact on IP: Panel Discussion with Our Legal Experts Recommendations and Best Practices
3D Printing Landscape
The Growth of 3D Printing GLOBAL 3D PRINTING MARKET MATERIALS USED Polymers Metals Ceramics Other GROWING MARKET ACROSS INDUSTRIES Consumer Products Defense Healthcare Education & Research Industrial Products Aerospace Automotive Others Source: Research and Markets: Global 3D Printing Market
The Growth of 3D Printing DRIVERS Efficient use of material Reduction in human error Customization of products Innovation opportunities Reduces development time RESTRAINTS Higher cost for individual user 3D printing software is expensive Lack of channel partner assistance Size of output generated Source: Research and Markets: Global 3D Printing Market
Moving into the Mainstream
Adoption
Enterprise Adoption Enterprise adoption is still experimental Companies are using 3D printing to accelerate product development Gartner predicts that 3D printing for prototyping will continue to accelerate over next two years
Consumer Adoption Consumer 3D printing is 5-10 years away from mainstream adoption 3D printers and printing software is still expensive, hindering wide adoption But prices are falling: Siemens predicts 3D printing will become 50% cheaper and 4x faster in next five years
Impact of 3D Printing on Infringement and Counterfeits Join Our Legal Experts Jeffrey G. Sheldon Thomas J. Peistrup
3D Printing Impact on IP $100 Billion: Estimated IP loss due to 3D printing by 2018 according to Gartner Affects industries across the board: defense, automotive, healthcare, consumer, general manufacturing, supply chain
Optimal Legal Strategy Start with the Product Design: Design product to obtain protection (example: add aesthetic nonfunctional elements) Seek all protection applicable Monitor the web to look for counterfeits
Types of Legal Protection Available Copyright Utility Patent Design Patent Trade Dress (Trademark)
Legal Protection: Copyright COPYRIGHT: PROS Some products are more suited to copyright protection than others Automatic Cheap to register Infringement easy to detect Easy takedown notices Good remedies register and notice Long life Recordation with U.S. Customs COPYRIGHT: CONS Limited protection for useful articles Product needs copyrightable element
Legal Protection: Utility Patent UTILITY PATENT: PROS Covers structure and use Can issue quickly Easy to get foreign innovation patents Some products are better protected than others with a utility patent (example: hip replacement ) UTILITY PATENT: CONS Rarely enforceable with takedown notices Usually need to buy product Expensive to get Damages tough to prove Expensive to enforce Many defenses / potential invalidation
Legal Protection: Design Patents DESIGN PATENTS: PROS Moderate expense Can obtain quickly Infringement easy to detect Damages defendant s profits DESIGN PATENTS: CONS Limited protection for useful articles Product needs aesthetic element Design patents are effective for some type of products compared to others
Legal Protection: Trade Dress TRADE DRESS: PROS Infringement easy to show Moderate expense Typically enforceable through takedown notices Last forever Recordation with U.S. Customs TRADE DRESS: CONS Need registration for take down notices Non-functional features Need to show secondary meaning Slow to get protection Converse Shoes. U.S. Reg. 4,398,753 The mark consists of the design of the two stripes on the midsole of the shoe, the design of the toe cap, Trade dress can be useful for protecting only some type of products
Recommendations & Best Practices
Trademark abuse is already prevalent on 3D printing marketplaces 3D Marketplaces
Proactive IP Protection Approach
Unique Data Sources PROPRIETARY TECHNOLOGY STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS BRAND PROTECTION EXPERTS Understand the scope of the problem to make Informed Business Decisions Gain access to unique data sources to Prioritize Targets Apply industries best practices & benchmarks to drive Actionable Insight
Thank You! For information on MarkMonitor solutions, services and complimentary educational events: Contact via email: field.marketing@markmonitor.com Visit our website: www.markmonitor.com Contact via phone: US: 1 (800) 745 9229 Contact our Speakers: Jeffrey Sheldon patentpend@gmail.com (626) 676-1201 Thomas Peistrup tpeistrup@instyler.com (310) 435-3794 Europe: +44 (0) 203 206 2220