"Innovation vs. Imitation - Plagiarius” accuses imitators for their unimaginative and shameless behaviour!

The "Plagiarius Awards" are given to the companies who make the most faithful unauthorized reproductions of gear they did not design. And while China has its fair share of knock-offs represented, many of the thieving companies operate in the same country as the original. The whole awards page is like a tasting menu for IP lawyers.

Initiated already back in 1977 by Prof. Rido Busse, the negative award "Plagiarius" serves to inform the public about the problem of fakes and plagiarisms and the negative impacts they have on not only the economy as a whole, but also on small companies and designers. Action Plagiarius awards the negative award at the annual “Ambiente” trade fair during a press conference. The award is given to those com-panies that the jury has found guilty of making "the most flagrant" design imitations. As his key figure, Busse chose a gnome, which he painted black with a gold nose to signify the “illicit earnings from product imitation”.

Admittedly, there is no progress and development without referring to already existing patterns, ideas and rules. However what counts is the willingness to develop the existing and give it an individual and distinctive style. The imitators pursue one goal only: to profit at the expense of the hard work of others – and this affects the creatives and the consumers likewise.

They copy successful products thereby not only saving on expensive costs for R&D and marketing, but also in production costs by outsourcing the production to foreign countries where the cost is much lower resulting in sometimes lower quality products which ultimately is at the expense of the consumer. In some industries such as toys, technical / electronic products or medication the poor quality can even be fatal.