A report produced by OHIM and the European Patent Office (EPO) showed that design-intensive industries generate 12% of all jobs in the EU and almost 13% of its GDP, and that companies that own designs have, on average, revenue that is 31% higher per employee than firms that do not.
The awards celebrate excellence in design and design management among Registered Community Design (RCD) holders, whether they are individual right holders, SMEs or large enterprises.
The RCD is a unitary intellectual property right administered by the OHIM and valid throughout the EU-28. Since its introduction, in 2003, OHIM has received nearly a million designs from companies and individuals within the EU and across the world.
The DesignEuropa Awards have three categories: Industry (firms with more than 50 employees and/or over €10million turnover); Small and Emerging companies (firms with fewer than 50 employees and/or less than €10m turnover, or companies established after January 1, 2013); and a Lifetime Achievement Award.
The application period runs from February 1 to July 15 2016. Application and nomination forms, plus rules and conditions are available on the DesignEuropa Awards section of OHIM’s website. Finalists will be announced in October 2016, with the award ceremony taking place in Milan, Italy, on November 30, 2016.
