First mooted by ACID and established in 2016 by the Alliance for Intellectual Property, British IP Day is an annual celebration of the role that intellectual property plays in the cultural standing and economic success of the United Kingdom, underpinning innovation and creative excellence. ACID (Anti Copying in Design) is a long-standing member of the Alliance, sharing the common goal of protecting the rights of UK creatives from devastating design theft. For ACID, the UK’s leading membership & campaigning organisation for design & IP, this year’s British IP Day celebrations are marked by an exciting new chapter, with the launch of their new ACID IP Charter.

The ACID IP Charter is a Code of Conduct and statement of intent, setting out the promise of its Charter Signatories to uphold ethics, respect and compliance as a minimum to designers of original works. Enabling both individuals and businesses to take a public stance against copying in design, ACID Charter Signatories help to amplify the voice of designers across the UK and affirm their support for the continual campaign for the preservation and promotion of invaluable IP protection rights. To sign the IP Charter, Charter Signatories are asked for a nominal one-off fee, which contributes to ACID’s fighting fund against design theft, and lobbying efforts for design law reform. 

To sign the ACID IP Charter & find out more, visit: https://www.acid.uk.com/become-a-charter-signatory/

Dids Macdonald, OBE., ACID’s CEO said, “The ACID IP Charter marks an exciting new chapter aimed at broadening our community and can be signed digitally on ACID’s new website, launched on British IP Day alongside the new IP Charter initiative. Featuring enhanced IP tools, we have listened to ACID member feedback and have created a seamless and secure IP Design Databank to allow designers to create a third-party independent audit trail of their intellectual property, ACID’s new website is curated to provide a complete bank of knowledge on IP rights”.

Tim Moss, CBE., CEO of the Intellectual Property Office, has confirmed his support for the IP Charter, expressing his delight in its “role in promoting respect for IP and providing the public with assurances on the integrity of the designs and behaviour of those using them.” He continued, “The design sector generates billions of pounds to the UK economy. Great design makes life better, helps UK products stand out, demonstrates quality and holds the trust of consumers in a competitive global marketplace.”

Cat Drew, Chief Design Officer of the Design Council added, “As the financial benefits of the Design Economy continue to grow across the UK economy, so too does the role of design as a shaper of more sustainable and equitable futures. With design in such a pivotal economic and cultural position, both now and in the future, it becomes more important than ever that creativity and innovation in the UK are robustly championed and protected. The work ACID does is crucial in supporting creatives and businesses across the Design Economy and the new Charter is an important step in drawing the sector together under a clear and common set of values.”

Gilane Tawadros, Chief Executive of the Design, Artists & Copyright Society (DACS) calls the new website a “fantastic resource” that “should be a go to for any designer wanting to find out more about their rights and how ACID can help them”, in addition to announcing her support for “ACID’s IP Charter campaign and their commitment to drive change across the UK’s IP landscape and respecting the rights of designers of original works.”

Further support about the ACID IP Charter was given by ACID Ambassador Sebastian Conran, “Unique IP gives UK businesses a commercial competitive edge and it right that creators of original designs should have robust legal protection; otherwise copyists are able to undermine the effort that often goes into creating original designs and IP.”