Seb Coe

With 850 days to go til the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics, many companies have planned their marketing and advertising strategies.

The closer we get to the event, we will inevitably see more and more advertising by brands and companies hoping

to associate themselves with such a sensational & prestigious event.

But businesses should bear in mind that a legal minefield awaits the unwary, and it’s crucial to get the publicity just right.

The Olympic organisers and ‘official partners’ have invested heavily to create the event, and the law aims to protect that investment and the value of licensing deals.

Back in April 2006, Seb Coe announced he wanted a “clean advertising environment” following new intellectual property rights of the new London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Act 2006.

Any non-official company’s marketing or advertising that refers to the event are very tightly restricted. The 2006 Act even clamps down on ‘ambush marketing’, whereby businesses try to advertise near an Olympics venue to bask in the event’s reflected glory.

In all these locations, businesses will have to avoid infringing something known as ‘Olympic Association Right’ under the Olympic Symbol etc (Protection) Act 1995 as well as the ‘London Olympics Association Right’ (LOar) under the 2006 Act.

Use of words such as ‘Olympic(s)’, ‘Olympian(s)’, and ‘Paralympic(s)’ are restricted. Meanwhile, a person infringes LOar if he uses a “representation” (of any kind) in the course of trade in a manner likely to suggest to the public that there is an association between the London Olympics and his goods or services.

Put simply, it’s unlawful to pass your business off as being ‘associated’ with the Games. Knowing where to draw the line can be tricky.

The 2006 Act gives some guidance, stating that when considering whether a particular advert has breached the rule, a court may “take account of” its use of specified – but otherwise innocuous – words, including ‘London’, ‘Games, ‘twenty twelve’, ‘gold’, and ‘summer’.

Errant advertisers who refuse to accept that parts of the English language may now be off-limits could face a claim for damages, an account of profits, and an injunction. They could also be prosecuted for a criminal offence.

London venue marketing specialist and Design Inc’s newly-appointed Senior Account Manager, Darren Scurville says “The 2012 Games remain a golden opportunity for brands & local businesses. However, Olympic-associated promotions can be a minefield and no company would want to infringe on the intellectual property rights. The key is knowing the safe-zone, or ‘reference without association’. There are many specialist lawyers who can help get your marketing approved. And, if you get it right, you will come out with the business equivalent of a gold medal. Get it wrong, and the disappointment of not being a business medallist could be accompanied by serious – and expensive – litigation.”

Industry leaders join national debate amongst designers taking place tomorrow  (Friday 26 March) to discuss implications for the industry.

The first national survey of the UK design industry since 2005, released by the Design Council, shows an industry in growth, increasingly comprising freelances and micro businesses.

The design sector has grown over the last five years despite the recession, according to the figures, with numbers of designers increasing by 29% to 232,000 and combined fee incomes of freelances and design consultancies and budgets of in-house design teams increasing by £3.4bn to £15bn.

The Design Council’s research also shows that the design industry is increasingly fragmenting with more independent freelancers and micro businesses. There are now 65,900 freelances, 39% more than in 2005, with total freelance fee income growing by 22% over the same period. And whilst there are 35% more designers working in design consultancies than in 2005 – bringing the total to 82,500 – the total number of consultancies has declined by 13% to an estimated 10,800. Despite budget cuts, in-house design teams are being retained. Collectively in-house design team budgets are down 34% since 2005, but the number of in-house design teams in the UK has increased by 10% to 6,500 suggesting that employers are holding on to creative employees despite downward pressure on budgets.

The Design Council has organised a national debate with leading industry figures to discuss the important issues which the survey raises around the composition of the industry. The debate will be webcast live from Royal Society of Art in London from 9.30am to 11.00am on Friday 26th March.

Designers who would like to attend the event are asked to register by emailing: info@designcouncil.org.uk.

During the debate designers at the event and watching online will be able to comment, pose questions and vote online on three motions:

1. Recessions are good news in disguise for designers
2. Networks are fine but they won’t keep me in business
3. Tighter finances mean more on the job learning and that’s a good thing

Digital design specialist Simon Waterfall is the compere for the debate and the pairs of speakers debating the motions are celebrated product and furniture designer Tom Dixon and creative industries number cruncher Mandy Merron (speaking on ‘Recessions are good news in disguise for designers’); design business advisor Shan Preddy and retail design specialist Callum Lumsden (speaking on ‘Networks are fine but they won’t keep me in business’); and graphics grandees Mike Dempsey and Brian Webb (speaking on ‘Tighter finances mean more on the job learning and that’s a good thing’)

The survey was conducted by the Design Council in autumn 2009 and is the second comprehensive analysis of the UK design industry. The survey examines design consultancies, in-house design teams and freelances working in communications design, digital and multimedia design, interior and exhibition design, product and industrial design, fashion design and service design. As such it provides a fascinating analysis of how UK design is evolving and a profile of UK design in the 21st century. The results also show:

• The South East region is home to one in six design businesses with London being home to almost one in four (23%)
• Well over half (60%) of design consultancies employ fewer than five people and a further quarter (27%) have less than ten staff. In-house teams tend to be larger than consultancies, with over a third (37%) of them comprising five or more designers.
• Many design businesses are relatively young: at least 29%, in every region or country of the UK having been in business for three years or less.
• 55% of design consultancies have an annual fee income of between £100,000 and £500,000, 58% of freelances have an annual income of less than £50,000
• There is still a lack of diversity in the industry, with the average designer being male, 38 years old and white.
• Most designers are not members of national design bodies. Designers rarely join networks, but are most likely to be members of business organisations like the Federation of Small Businesses (14%) and the British Chamber of Commerce (12%). Beyond this, they are also more likely to have joined a regional design network or forum (9%) than a national design body.

If you are considering a forthcoming creative/marketing project, you may be interested in receiving Design Inc’s  Information Pack.