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Directive 98/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the CouncilShow full title
Directive 98/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 1998 on the legal protection of designs
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Article 7Designs dictated by their technical function and designs of interconnections
1.A design right shall not subsist in features of appearance of a product which are solely dictated by its technical function.
2.A design right shall not subsist in features of appearance of a product which must necessarily be reproduced in their exact form and dimensions in order to permit the product in which the design is incorporated or to which it is applied to be mechanically connected to or placed in, around or against another product so that either product may perform its function.
3.Notwithstanding paragraph 2, a design right shall, under the conditions set out in Articles 4 and 5, subsist in a design serving the purpose of allowing multiple assembly or connection of mutually interchangeable products within a modular system.
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