Резюме

The study focusses on the legal nature of industrial design and its legal protection in the EU, taking into account the most recent and updated texts of the relevant EU Directive and Regulation in response to the digitisation of design activities, business, and society as a whole.

The aim is to present and analytically examine the fundamental issues of EU design law arising from updated legislation, that are of importance for designers, applicants, implementers, and holders of the exclusive rights. The analysis focusses on Regulation (EU) 2024/2822 and Directive (EU) 2024/2823 of the European Parliament and of the Council in comparison with the previously enacted Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002 on Community designs and a Directive 98/71/EC on the legal protection of designs. Particu-lar attention is given to industrial design as a suitable and flexible instrument for protecting product innovations and business identifiers within the territory of the EU, emphasising the amendments to the EU Directive and Regulation in the field of design resulting from the digitalisation of design, business and society as a whole.

The study adopts a systematic approach and employs a comprehensive methodology, involving a legal comparison of enacted substantive and pro-cedural norms, combined with an examination of cases of Community de-signs already registered under current Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002. The results allow to formulate conclusions and proposals to improve "indus-trial design" object.