A method for the antimicrobial protection of a plane or non-plane surface of a material object, i.e. other than a human or animal body. An inner face of a self-adhesive plastics film is coated with a layer of adhesive and applied against the surface of the object, the film being constituted by plasticized PVC including a polymeric plasticizer. The film is flexible and manually stretchable and capable of following the contour of the surface, has an elongation at break of more than 50% and an ultimate tensile strength of less than 6000 N/m. The film incorporates in its material or includes on its outer surface an antimicrobial agent rendering the outer surface of the film active against microbes.
