From Germany comes the news that this year's "Plagiarius Awards" have been awarded at the consumer goods trade fair Ambiente. According to a press release issued by Aktion Plagiarius, the negative

"... [Plagiarius] award is given to those manufacturers and distributors whom the jury has found guilty of making or selling "the most flagrant" (design) imitations. As his key figure, Prof. Rido Busse chose a gnome which he painted black with a gold nose to signify the “illicit earnings from product imitation”. The aim of “Plagiarius” is to inform all parties affected - designers and enterprises as well as politicians, legislators and not least consumers - by the means of public relations, counsel, world-wide exhibitions and lectures about the extent, damages and dangers incurred by fakes and plagiarisms."

The first prize went to a salt and pepper set „Two-in-One“. The original is made by German WMF. The copy was made by Shantou Lian Plastic Products Co. Ltd. of China. Second came a vegetable slicer called „Trendline“. The orginal is made by Börner GmbH Kunststoff- und Metallwarenfabrik, Germany, the copy is distributed by Dutch Mesa Products B.V. The third prize went to an expansion vessel for heating systems „PND“. The original is produced by Swiss Pneumatex AG, the copy is made by Heinrich Winkelmann GmbH & Co. KG of Germany. For a full list of this year's awards, click here: in German; in English.

The press release provides further information on the effects of and reasons behind this phenomenon. The Plagiarius website also has detailled lists and a comparison of the products in question with photos, as well as an archive of past winners, which includes furniture retailer IKEA. A picture gallery on German newssite n-tv.de further illustrates just how unashamed some manufacturers are when it comes to copying other manufacturer's products. For those of you travelling to Germany, there is also a museum of plagiarised products which is open to the interested public.