[Article / US Designs] Protection of goods and other subject matter in virtual spaces under US design law (Yoichiro Yamaguchi, Patent, August 2025)
Updated: 3 hours ago
Article information
Article type: Publication review
Categories: United States
Main topics: Metaverse / Similarity of designs / Novelty
First published on this website: October 1, 2026
Display and classification checked: October 1, 2026 (not a revalidation of the legal analysis)
[Article / US Designs] Protection of goods and other subject matter in virtual spaces under US design law (Yoichiro Yamaguchi, Patent, August 2025)
1. A distinctive feature of the US design system: The article's use is disregarded
US design law is part of patent law (35 U.S.C. §171), and patent principles apply. Its most significant feature is that the article's use stated in the claim preamble is, in principle, not limiting.
Novelty: Even a known design from a technical field entirely different from that of the claimed article can negate novelty if its shape is substantially identical (e.g. a compressed-gas capsule's novelty was denied based on a bottle design).
Scope of rights: Design rights can also be enforced against other articles having different uses. Even if the registered design constitutes only part of the accused article, rights can be enforced against the entire article.
2. Protection of designs in virtual spaces
In the US, icons and GUIs shown on a display are protectable as parts of the display.
Enforcement from reality to virtual space: A design right for a real product (such as shoes) can support an infringement claim where that product is displayed and sold on a display in virtual space and is similar enough to confuse the ordinary observer.
Enforcement from virtual space to reality: Conversely, a design right for an article represented on a display in virtual space (such as virtual three-dimensional shoes) can also support an injunction against a physical product of the same design sold in the real world.
3. Recent US registration examples
The article presents illustrative registrations demonstrating the flexibility of USPTO practice.
Original article: https://lnkd.in/gjWvQ7Cn
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Updates and corrections
Substantive corrections and additions are recorded separately from classification, related links and display changes.
October 1, 2026: First publication of the author's original LinkedIn text on this website. Article type, categories, topic tags, sources and consultation navigation added.
2026-10-01 | Display maintenance: added case references stated in the original or language-alternate metadata; not a revalidation of legal analysis.
2026-10-01 | Name notation: replaced verified Japanese-script personal names with Roman-letter forms in this English article and its navigation. Legal analysis and original publication date unchanged.
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