The cumulation of copyright and industrial design in the protection of typefaces: a brief incursion into the Argentine, Chilean and Uruguayan systems

Abstract

The hybrid nature of works of applied art rouses controversies in light of the possibility of cumulative rights in their protection, notably design registration, in the field of industrial property rights, and copyright. Among works of applied art, the issue is particularly complex approaching typefaces, as they combine form and function in a manner that is almost non dissoluble. Internationally countries adopt different systems as to the protection of works of applied art and, by extension, typefaces, making it difficult for designers to obtain exclusive rights. In order to increase the available knowledge about type protection abroad, it is proposed a qualitative documental analysis over the legal framework of South American countries socio-economically similar to Brazil: Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. By a compared legislative analysis point of view, the aim is to gather a body of knowledge that describes how types may be protected and under which circumstances cumulative rights are admissible. The results show substantial legislative disparities: although cumulative rights are deemed possible, the application of norms is changeable and subject to subjective criteria.