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Olympic ceremony subject to further claims of design similarities Olympic ceremony subject to further claims of design similarities
(2 months later)
It was one of the most memorable moments of the Olympic opening ceremony, as 320 hospital beds were wheeled into the stadium and flickered to life. Aglow with illuminated duvets, the beds were arranged to spell out the logo of the Great Ormond Street hospital and the NHS, whose staff proceeded to burst into an acrobatic jive routine around trampolining children. But for young London design studio Loop.pH, the scene was strangely familiar.It was one of the most memorable moments of the Olympic opening ceremony, as 320 hospital beds were wheeled into the stadium and flickered to life. Aglow with illuminated duvets, the beds were arranged to spell out the logo of the Great Ormond Street hospital and the NHS, whose staff proceeded to burst into an acrobatic jive routine around trampolining children. But for young London design studio Loop.pH, the scene was strangely familiar.
"I designed a glowing duvet 10 years ago, when I was a student at the Royal College of Art," says Rachel Wingfield, co-director of Loop.pH, which specialises in light installations. "Danny Boyle spotted it and invited me in for a meeting in 2005 when he was working on the set design for the film Sunshine. He thought the illuminated bedding would look great on the spaceship – and he even commissioned one for his own home.""I designed a glowing duvet 10 years ago, when I was a student at the Royal College of Art," says Rachel Wingfield, co-director of Loop.pH, which specialises in light installations. "Danny Boyle spotted it and invited me in for a meeting in 2005 when he was working on the set design for the film Sunshine. He thought the illuminated bedding would look great on the spaceship – and he even commissioned one for his own home."
Wingfield's project, titled Light Sleeper, was designed as a personal alarm clock, waking sleepers gently by simulating a natural dawn. A duvet and pillow fitted with lines of electroluminescent wire, it was particularly aimed at people who suffer from seasonal affective disorder.Wingfield's project, titled Light Sleeper, was designed as a personal alarm clock, waking sleepers gently by simulating a natural dawn. A duvet and pillow fitted with lines of electroluminescent wire, it was particularly aimed at people who suffer from seasonal affective disorder.
"As the ceremony unfolded I was flooded with texts and phone calls from people congratulating me," says Wingfield, whose project was widely published when she graduated in 2002. "I was really shocked. Danny had been so excited when we met, but we hadn't heard anything since we made those first duvets for him – for which we retained the copyright. We specialise in making props and creating environments, so these pieces for the ceremony would have been a perfect commission.""As the ceremony unfolded I was flooded with texts and phone calls from people congratulating me," says Wingfield, whose project was widely published when she graduated in 2002. "I was really shocked. Danny had been so excited when we met, but we hadn't heard anything since we made those first duvets for him – for which we retained the copyright. We specialise in making props and creating environments, so these pieces for the ceremony would have been a perfect commission."
Instead, the beds and duvets were made by production giant Tait Towers, which has produced sets for U2 and the Rolling Stones since 1978, and worked on a substantial part of the ceremony, from the pixelated screen integrated into the stadium seating, to the illuminated London taxis and umbrellas. Their glowing bedding used the more recent technology of strips of LED lighting, rather than electroluminescent wire, but the company declined to comment on the inspiration for its design.Instead, the beds and duvets were made by production giant Tait Towers, which has produced sets for U2 and the Rolling Stones since 1978, and worked on a substantial part of the ceremony, from the pixelated screen integrated into the stadium seating, to the illuminated London taxis and umbrellas. Their glowing bedding used the more recent technology of strips of LED lighting, rather than electroluminescent wire, but the company declined to comment on the inspiration for its design.
In a statement to the Guardian, Danny Boyle was adamant the designs are unrelated. "Once again this claim is simply not true," he said, acknowledging that Wingfield had been commissioned and paid for her work in 2005, but that the idea was not used.In a statement to the Guardian, Danny Boyle was adamant the designs are unrelated. "Once again this claim is simply not true," he said, acknowledging that Wingfield had been commissioned and paid for her work in 2005, but that the idea was not used.
"We designed our hospital beds to be intense blocks of light that switched on and off … the original design was for the whole bed, its frame, mattress, pillow and sheet, to be illuminated. This was reduced by the manufacturers for reasons of cost, safety and practicality to just the top sheet. Any visual coincidence is a result of the only commonly available technology powerful enough to get sufficient light inside the sheet.""We designed our hospital beds to be intense blocks of light that switched on and off … the original design was for the whole bed, its frame, mattress, pillow and sheet, to be illuminated. This was reduced by the manufacturers for reasons of cost, safety and practicality to just the top sheet. Any visual coincidence is a result of the only commonly available technology powerful enough to get sufficient light inside the sheet."
"We tried to acknowledge all inspirations and contributions, great and small," he added, "and whilst it's inevitable some were innocently overlooked, can assure you that Rachel Wingfield's beautiful work was not amongst them.""We tried to acknowledge all inspirations and contributions, great and small," he added, "and whilst it's inevitable some were innocently overlooked, can assure you that Rachel Wingfield's beautiful work was not amongst them."
The accusations follow claims made last month that the Olympic cauldron, designed by Thomas Heatherwick, was influenced by a design proposed by New York practice Atopia – in which petal-like elements were to be assembled into a canopy during the opening ceremony and distributed to the competing nations after the Games. Heatherwick, Boyle and commissioning client Locog have strongly denied any connection, but Atopia is pursuing the case.The accusations follow claims made last month that the Olympic cauldron, designed by Thomas Heatherwick, was influenced by a design proposed by New York practice Atopia – in which petal-like elements were to be assembled into a canopy during the opening ceremony and distributed to the competing nations after the Games. Heatherwick, Boyle and commissioning client Locog have strongly denied any connection, but Atopia is pursuing the case.
The studio has now instructed specialist intellectual property lawyers at Arnold & Porter to "vigorously pursue" Locog for breach of confidence. In a statement to the Guardian, the law firm said: "We are convinced that once Locog has the opportunity to reflect on the number of detailed design elements, confidentially provided by Atopia, which somehow found their way into the London 2012 proceedings, Atopia will get its just recognition and compensation."The studio has now instructed specialist intellectual property lawyers at Arnold & Porter to "vigorously pursue" Locog for breach of confidence. In a statement to the Guardian, the law firm said: "We are convinced that once Locog has the opportunity to reflect on the number of detailed design elements, confidentially provided by Atopia, which somehow found their way into the London 2012 proceedings, Atopia will get its just recognition and compensation."
Arnold & Porter – one of the largest law firms in the world, with a history that includes representing the victims of the McCarthy witch trails in the 1950s – has a strong track record in IP cases, having successfully defended Dan Brown's publisher from a claim of copyright infringement made by rival authors against the Da Vinci Code in 2006.Arnold & Porter – one of the largest law firms in the world, with a history that includes representing the victims of the McCarthy witch trails in the 1950s – has a strong track record in IP cases, having successfully defended Dan Brown's publisher from a claim of copyright infringement made by rival authors against the Da Vinci Code in 2006.
But while cases of infringement in novels and artworks are often cut and dried, intellectual property in design remains a murky area. The House of Lords is currently debating a new intellectual property bill, tabled in May, which will put design right on the same footing as copyright and make copying registered designs a criminal offence. But for now, as the law stands, a design does not receive the same level of protection as an "artistic work".But while cases of infringement in novels and artworks are often cut and dried, intellectual property in design remains a murky area. The House of Lords is currently debating a new intellectual property bill, tabled in May, which will put design right on the same footing as copyright and make copying registered designs a criminal offence. But for now, as the law stands, a design does not receive the same level of protection as an "artistic work".
"There's a great deal of uncertainty about the current protection offered by 'design right'," says Paul Leonard, who spent a decade as director of the London-based IP Institute, before joining design firm Billings Jackson. "Because of a long history of case law in which design right hasn't protected the designer, there's a huge lack of confidence in the system. Rights are there to give certainty on investment, but at the moment there's complete uncertainty. For the time being, protecting a design is like taking out an insurance policy without knowing what on earth it covers.""There's a great deal of uncertainty about the current protection offered by 'design right'," says Paul Leonard, who spent a decade as director of the London-based IP Institute, before joining design firm Billings Jackson. "Because of a long history of case law in which design right hasn't protected the designer, there's a huge lack of confidence in the system. Rights are there to give certainty on investment, but at the moment there's complete uncertainty. For the time being, protecting a design is like taking out an insurance policy without knowing what on earth it covers."
While design right infringement is difficult to prove, as it requires evidence of direct derivation from the design in question, others are confident that Atopia's case rests on the confidentiality of its pitch to Locog.While design right infringement is difficult to prove, as it requires evidence of direct derivation from the design in question, others are confident that Atopia's case rests on the confidentiality of its pitch to Locog.
"There is a strong body of case law about the confidentiality of submissions," says Lionel Bentley, professor of intellectual property at the University of Cambridge. "If Atopia's idea was regarded as a confidential pitch of an idea from designer to recipient, there could well be grounds for breach of confidence proceedings.""There is a strong body of case law about the confidentiality of submissions," says Lionel Bentley, professor of intellectual property at the University of Cambridge. "If Atopia's idea was regarded as a confidential pitch of an idea from designer to recipient, there could well be grounds for breach of confidence proceedings."
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