[ Right to prohibit ]

Claim to compensation.

In Germany – as in many other countries – the freedom to copy applies in principle. It is normally permissible to copy new products, processes, trade marks and designs with no way of calling the plagiarist to account – unless particular intellectual property rights exist.

What all intellectual property rights have in common is the right to prohibit, i.e. the possibility of forbidding third parties to copy and make commercial use of the protected product or the protected trade mark. Not only manufacturing, but also marketing by third companies and simply offering and advertising can be prohibited.

The proprietor of an industrial property right can also require the infringer to cease and desist from infringing the intellectual property right and in addition can claim compensation for products already sold. He can also demand information on the origin of the products and can even have products still in existence destroyed.