Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk 126 THE door industry journal winter 2022 Locks & Building Hardware The Importance of Patent Protection to Prevent Key Copying Only patent protection provides a genuine guarantee against key copying. Carl Jones, Product Category Manager - Cylinders & Padlocks at ASSA ABLOY Door Hardware Group, explains why. One of the most important functions of any cylinder locking system is key copy protection. Without this, keys can easily fall into the wrong hands, compromising the security of a building or facility. Yet unfortunately, many cylinder systems still allow for extra keys to be legally obtained without the owners’ knowledge. To reassure customers that this won’t happen, some manufacturers advertise claims to the effect of ‘lifelong trademark protection’. This implies their products are protected from illegal copying. Unfortunately, this is misleading – and could pose a serious risk not only to the facility that buys the claim but to the locksmith who supplies the system. Here’s a look at the myth of so-called ‘trademark protection’ and how to ensure the locking systems you supply are genuinely protected against key copying. The myth of trademark protection ‘Unlimited trademark protection’, ‘lifelong trademark protection’, ‘lifetime trademark protection which protects against illegal duplication of keys’, and ‘key profile with trademark protection for lifelong, legal key protection’. These are all real examples of claims that have been made by suppliers of cylinder locks to promote their products. All the above claims imply that the keys benefit from protection from unauthorised copying. However, applying a trademark design to the cross-section of a key has no legal protection under trademark law. As a result, none of these claims actually mean that the key is protected whatsoever. The fact is that the only legitimate protection against key copying is patent protection. This is because patents are wholly concerned with the functional aspect of a product or process. The functionality of a key is covered within patent law, and therefore a key with patent protection is genuinely protected from unauthorised copying. The fallout of false claims Whenever the trademark on the cross-section of a key is used in marketing to suggest that it prevents copying, this is a misuse of a trademark. The consequences of misusing trademarks are serious, with the potential to severely damage any company making them. For example, in 2016, a court in Germany found an industry manufacturer guilty of making misleading claims in their advertising that their trademarks provided key copy protection. The company was ordered to remove all claims relating to trademarked key profiles from their advertising, and the judge explained that, in cases of this nature, penalties can include a fine of up to €250,000 and up to two years’ imprisonment.
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