PBD

I totally agree that people shouldn't just blatantly copy or amend anyone's patented designs, wherever they are in the world, however for some things it's incredibly difficult to come up with something new or varied enough to not be like it's competitors.
Who can design; a tyre that looks like no other, a tablet pc, chainsaw, touchscreen buttons or a sensible shaped smart phone in a world where where people want what they want? Products following the same or similar purposes WILL look similar when the companies  are all looking to make sales in that particular market. A product is the sum of it's parts. Change one or more of products parts and it becomes a new product e.g. a major tech company altering it's display size, memory capacity or weight. Who invented the first flat screen, LED  display or  TV? Are those companies the only ones who now make those products? No, but the competition helps to make better products and gives the public a better deal.  Greed and power are great motivators when it comes to multinationals and conglomerates, what they would really like, is for theirs to be the only product on the market, so that could charge what they like and not have to spend as much on continuous development. They don't care about customers, only people willing to hand over their money, and stifling any viable threats.