Brainstorming ideas in US can still be patentable. Brainstorming in the rest of the world is not. The US is very respectful of inventor’s property rights. ..Of course I assume that is what happened in this competition. Hope that clears things up.

It’s like walking in on a restaurant announcing that you’ve got a competition – but only people with muostache are allowed to participate… With other words: ridicolous

LG, i am dissapointed and as you can see, im not alone (read the posts here). A brand so global should know better then just pointing and flagging with amazing prices and then just allowing few people to participate… insane

If this is their approach to finding creative ideas I wonder why they don’t generate their advertising, marketing and engineering by running competitions? It suggests to me that design thinking is not yet an integrated part of LG corporate culture.

“For all Designs: Failure of any Design to comply with the above Guidelines and Restrictions, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion, may result in disqualification. All Designs will become the exclusive property of Sponsor, and none will be acknowledged or returned. You hereby waive any moral rights or any equivalent rights regarding the form or extent of any alteration to the Design or the making of any derivative works based on the Design, including, without limitation, photographs, drawings or other visual reproductions or the Design, in any medium, for any purpose.
You acknowledge that LG owns all Designs whether patentable or unpatentable, and all works of authorship, whether copyrightable or uncopyrightable, made, developed, conceived, acquired, devised, discovered or created by you for this Contest. BY ENTERING A DESIGN IN THIS CONTEST YOU HEREBY IRREVOCABLE ASSIGN, CONVEY AND TRANSFER TO SPONSOR ANY AND ALL RIGHT, TITLE AND INTEREST IN THE DESIGN INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ALL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS EXISTING THEREIN. Sponsor may, in its sole discretion, publish or exhibit the Design in whole or in part, alone or in
combination with other Designs, and that the Design may be changed, altered, edited or modified, used in distorted, illusory or composite form, or in any other manner, as solely determined by Sponsor. Sponsor may or may not, in its sole discretion, pursue production of any Design submitted. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible or misdirected Designs, which are void. You understand and acknowledge that LG is in the business of designing and manufacturing mobile handsets
and therefore does not agree to treat your entry as secret or confidential. You also acknowledge that a mobile phone designed independently by LG may be similar to your Design. Accordingly, you release LG from any and all claims, liability or causes of action arising from or related to the Design, and you will not be entitled to any compensation from LG with respect to your entry or the Design other than as provided to winners of the Contest.”

AIGA Letter regarding Competitions

Dear _______,

I am writing to on behalf of AIGA, the professional association for design. We are concerned about your recently publicized design contest [name or nature of contest].

Although we realize that such contests are a popular way for organizations to generate publicity and participation—and to save costs—there are a number of reasons why asking for work without compensation except for a single design that is selected, which is termed speculative work in the profession, contradicts the ethics of our profession.

The first is that design is a process. It involves time, creative energy, strategy and, most importantly, client participation. For a designer to generate work without going through this process is to create something that is undeveloped and that does not reflect the client’s input and participation. The resulting work is not truly representative of the value or level of service designers provide, nor does it adequately or appropriately address your needs as a client. Just as you wouldn’t seek legal or financial advice from a consultant prior to hiring them, a designer must also be well acquainted with your organization and goals if they are to make informed and responsible recommendations.

The other reason is that expecting speculative or uncompensated work demonstrates a trivializing of the contribution design makes to creating value for clients. Of all the entrants in your contest or competition, only one will be selected as a finalist. The time and work of all others will have gone for naught. This attitude on the part of a prospective client is likely to result in receiving work from students, inexperienced or untrained designers, or those less likely to get work from more traditional ways of demonstrating the soundness of their approach toward clients’ problems. The pool of work from which you will select will not necessarily represent the quality of work you deserve from seeking a professional designer. In the end, everyone loses.

We encourage you to reconsider holding this contest, and instead issue a Request For Proposals from qualified design professionals. I know that selecting a designer can be a difficult and daunting task. To assist you, the AIGA provides resources to help you research firms in your area. This database is available online at http://www.aiga.org/directory. We have also created a helpful guide that can assist you in researching qualified designers, writing a design brief, and managing the design process. This resource is also available free online at http://www.aiga.org/design-business-and-ethics.

We are pleased that you recognize the need for design, and hope that you will consider these recommendations in the spirit in which they are offered—to help you realize the most that design has to offer. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me directly at [contact info].

Your consideration of these professional design issues is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

[Member Name], AIGA