Patents are legal protections that give exclusive credit to creators of new and useful inventions and processes. While they were once mainly associated with engineers and scientists, patents are now playing a large role in the digital world, specifically with web design. Today’s websites are far from basic systems designed to solely give information; they combine design, user interaction and complex technology for a complete virtual experience. From navigation systems to user experiences, many design decisions are closely tied to how a product works.
Understanding how patents work can help current and future web designers avoid legal risks that can lead to costly court cases and pay-outs, protect innovative ideas from plagiarism and communicate more effectively with web designers.
This article breaks down what web designers need to know to design confidence in a patent-driven landscape.
Patents vs Copyrights vs Trademarks
Legal terms can be confusing for non-legals, especially intellectual property terms such as patent, copyright and trademark. They may seem very similar; however, there are key differences between these terms that you should be aware of:
- Patent: This is a type of intellectual property that involves protecting inventions and functional ideas. Technical processes, systems or methods that solve problems, with famous examples being the telephone, patented by Alexander Graham-Bell. However, in digital spaces, this can include unique user interaction methods or software-driven functionality.
- Copyright: On the other hand, copyright protects original creative expression, such as music sampling, in which the most famous example is the chord progression in Under Pressure by David Bowie. For web designers, this usually involves visual designs, layouts, graphics and written content.
- Trademarks: This kind of intellectual property protects brand identities, such as logos, brand names and slogans, basically any distinctive visual elements that are tied to a brand. This is important for web designers, as they must ensure that graphics are not copied or part of another brand’s identity.
Confusing these protections can create legal risk for designers, as some may assume that a design or function is safe to use when it is protected in one of these ways. Ensuring that designers understand these issues allows designers to protect their own work, whilst preventing them from inadvertently infringing on others’ intellectual property.
What Can Be Patented in Web Design?
There are a few patentable elements that can apply to web design that designers should know about to avoid conflict and protect themselves. In web design specifically, patents focus on how something works rather than the physical elements such as colours and layouts. This includes users’ interaction methods, which can be a new way for users to navigate content, complete transactions, or interact with dynamic elements on the page. An example of this is Apple’s slide-to-unlock feature.
Technical processes behind UX functionality can also be patentable when they solve a specific problem in a novel way, such as increasing user engagement through a specific element or a unique system. A famous example of this is Amazon’s one-click checkout process, which is one of the company’s USPs.
Back-end systems, such as data handling methods and interactive workflows, also qualify for protection.
Common Risks Web Designers Face
One of the biggest patent risks that web designers face is unintentional infringement. Popular interaction patterns, such as gestures and interactive features, may seem safe to reuse for most designers as they are common; however, some, such as contextual data and personalisation are less common. Designers can unknowingly implement patented features following client requests or trying to replicate features from competitors’ websites.
Whilst patents are the same for everyone, freelancers and agencies can face different levels of risk. Freelancers may be more exposed and less aware of current patents, due to limited legal information, which can be stressful and crippling for individual workers.
On the other hand, agencies can face larger risks due to the size of projects, which can be national and international, and reflected in their punishments. Without awareness, any designer may inherit legal issues that they never meant to take on.
Best Practises to Stay Safe
There are a few practices that all designers should implement when creating a website to ensure that they can stay safe and clear of legal trouble.
- Work with clear contracts and client agreements to ensure that you can identify responsibility and through official documents.
- Document your design and development process, whether that be through keeping all drafts in a folder or taking photos at different stages.
- Collaborate with developers and legal professionals when needed. Just like medical patents collaborate with medical malpractice solicitors, web designers should collaborate with patent solicitors.
- Do basic due diligence and thorough research before implementing a feature that you might have used before.
Following these practices can keep you safe in a digital age and ensure that you aren’t a victim of any misconduct that can impact your personal life.