Dec
2nd
Tue
2nd
Why Does OXO Need To License Designs?
I guess I need to brush up on IP law regarding design patents. I saw this interesting video of a talk by Alex Lee, the president of OXO. He talks about 3 OXO tools — a mango peeler (which just looks like a big apple corer), a salad spinner and a measuring cup. The interesting part to me is that Mr. Lee implies that OXO has a “standard contract” for buying/licensing kitchenware designs. Is this even necessary? Why can’t OXO just design a similar (but slightly different) version of a kitchen tool? In the same vein, I always wondered why Herman Miller chairs knock-offs aren’t more prevalent. Perhaps I should talk to an IP lawyer someday… Or perhaps I’m just not shopping at the right knock-off stores.
