How Design Rights Impact the Value of GUI Designs? Evidence from US Design Patents

Category: Management & Microeconomics Brown Bag Seminar
When: 07 November 2024
, 12:30
 - 13:30
Where: RuW 4.201
Speaker: Egbert Amoncio

Title: How Design Rights Impact the Value of GUI Designs? Evidence from US Design Patents (w/ Alexander Cuntz and Carsten Fink)

Abstract: Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) have become central to firm strategy and innovation, with companies like Samsung and Apple increasingly relying on design protection for their GUIs. However, the scope of such protection remains ambiguous. In this paper, we investigate the impact of the 2016 US Supreme Court decision on the value of GUI designs. Using a computer vision approach, we conceptualize GUI styles, clustering visually similar designs to assess their value. Our method employs a case-control approach, comparing protected GUIs with non-GUI counterparts. The results indicate that GUI design protection significantly increases the value of GUIs, particularly in styles involving multiple industries. This highlights the strategic importance of design protection across diverse sectors. Based on these findings, we outline policy implications related to GUI design protection.

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