At Smart Solar we pride ourselves on creating innovative new products. It remains a source of much frustration that both in Asia and even in the UK, there seems less and less respect for intellectual property and design integrity. In our experience, relatively few companies in our sector create genuinely new or innovative new products, yet copying of product is rife. Over the last year we have been forced to take legal action against several companies for infringement, and in each instance we have received settlement from them. However we would much rather that a company’s intellectual property was respected in the first place, and that there were tighter rules on those who blatantly copied product or infringed IP. It is easy to copy another product, but it must remembered that the market only evolves from the work of true pioneers and innovators, without whom the market would quickly become starved of genuine new product. Knocking off product to get business off the back of another company’s efforts is ultimately bad business for everyone, both customers and retailers, since it tends to stifle true innovation.