The Commission has made a proposal for a Regulation creating a framework for the protection of intellectual property for craft and industrial products based on the originality and authenticity of the traditional practices of their regions. Protection will be achieved by extending the system of designations of origin for agricultural products, which has the advantage of drawing on the body of doctrine and case law on this form of intellectual property.

The EU Commission believes that the extension of the designation of origin protection regime to craft and industrial products will make it easier for consumers to recognise the quality of these products and help them in their purchasing decisions, while also helping to promote, attract and retain skills and jobs in European regions, contributing to their economic development. The EU’s interest in extending the scope of designations of origin is not new. It is worth highlighting its involvement in the negotiations on geographical indications in the WTO Doha development Agenda, in particular in its communication of 13 June 2005 proposing the amendment of Section 3 TRIPS in order to extend the existing system of protection of designations of origin for wines and spirits to geographical designations for all products. In addition, it proposed the inclusion of an annex to TRIPS establishing a multilateral system of notification and registration of appellations of origin.

In the Intellectual Property Action Plan published on 20 November 2020 the Commission announced its objective to strengthen the protection of agricultural geographical indications, while considering the feasibility of an EU-wide system of protection of geographical indications for non-agricultural products.

On 13 April last the Commission presented the proposal for a Regulation establishing a legal framework for the EU-wide protection of geographical indications for artisanal and industrial products in order to help producers protect and enforce the intellectual property rights of their products throughout the EU. The new Regulation will also facilitate action against counterfeit products, including those sold online. It will address the currently fragmented and partial protections that exist at national level.

The framework proposed by the Commission will allow for a simple and cost-effective registration of GIs for craft and industrial products by establishing a two-tier application process. This will require producers to submit their GI applications to the designated authorities of the Member States, which will then submit the approved applications for further evaluation and approval to the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). A direct application procedure to the EUIPO will also be possible for Member States that do not have a national evaluation procedure. The proposal also offers the possibility for producers to self-declare the conformity of their products with the specification, which will make the system lighter and less costly.

It will also allow full compatibility with international GI protection by enabling producers of registered craft and industrial GIs to protect their products in all signatory countries of the Geneva Act on Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications under the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), to which the EU acceded in November 2019 and which covers craft and industrial GIs. At the same time, it will now be possible to protect corresponding GIs from third countries within the EU.

Finally, the proposed protection framework will be useful in supporting the development of rural and other regions of Europe by providing incentives for producers, especially SMEs, to invest in new, authentic products and create niche markets. At the same time, it will help to preserve unique competences that might otherwise disappear, especially in Europe’s rural and less developed regions. Regions will benefit from the reputation of the new GIs. This can help to attract tourists and create new highly skilled jobs in the regions, thus boosting their economic recovery.