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Protect Your Intellectual Property
Intellectual Property or ‘IP’
is a hot issue. It’s defined in the American Heritage Dictionary as “A
product of the intellect that has commercial value” and by Commerce-database.com
as “any product of human intellect that is unique and un-obvious with
some value in the marketplace”.
IP begins as an idea about something new. The invention of a new kind of
screw fastener or the creation of an original work of art is an idea
turned into reality. The value comes in when that fastener or artwork
turns out to have commercial potential.
“Intellectual property” includes the braking system on your car
(patent), the content of the books you read (copyright), and the maker’s
logo on your PC (trademark).
If you own the intellectual
property rights for something you have the right to say who can use it
and for what purposes. But you first have to establish your ownership of
those IP rights.
If you’ve invented something you can protect your invention with a
patent. If you’ve created a piece of software or a work of art you can
protect it with a copyright. If your business has a logo or a unique
name you can protect it with a trademark.
Patents
A Patent is a right granted by a national government in exchange for a
complete disclosure of an invention. It gives the successful applicant
the right to exclude others from making, using or selling the invention
for a fixed period of time.
To be patentable an invention must be novel, it must not be obvious to a
person skilled in the field of the invention, and it must have utility.
Patents stay within national boundaries and each country grants its own
patents based on its own standards.
To get a patent the inventor files a formal application with appropriate
authorities that discloses the substance of the invention and gives a
sufficient written description to allow the public to make the
invention.
The patent process can take several years, during which the invention is
categorized as ‘patent pending’.
Copyright
Copyright is the exclusive right of the creator or any other copyright
holder to reproduce a copyrighted work. It is sensible to advise others
of your copyright by marking all copies of the work with a copyright
notice.
Copyright exists as soon as a work of art or item of software is
created, and registration is purely voluntary. Registration of a
copyright will greatly assist the copyright holder to enforce his or her
rights in case of a legal dispute.
Registration involves filing an application for copyright which in most
countries requires completing a form, paying a small fee, and providing
a copy of the work you want to copyright.
Copyright extends to other countries through the Berne Convention and
Universal Copyright Convention although the term of a copyright depends
on the applicable national law.
Incidentally, not all unauthorized use of copyrighted material is
illegal. The public is allowed to make "fair use" of copyrighted
material – usually for educational or other noncommercial purposes.
Trademarks
Trademarks protect business names, logos and other general visual
attributes that distinguish a business from its competitors. The primary
purpose of a trademark is to prevent confusion over a product’s origins,
especially among consumers.
How to protect your IP
Protecting your intellectual property can be a short, simple and
inexpensive process or a long, complex and expensive one depending on
which sort of protection you require.
Copyright applications are pretty straightforward and require only a
small amount of effort and a modest fee. You can file your own copyright
application in most countries and not require the services of a lawyer.
Trademarks are another story. There are so many variables in a trademark
application that the costs and length of time required can’t be
generally estimated. They require the advice of a lawyer skilled in the
field of trademarks and extensive searches to establish the uniqueness
of your trademark.
The most expensive and complex cases are usually those involving
patents. Again, the services of a specialist legal adviser will be
required, and the secrecy involved in patent applications will cause
extensive delays.
The first step to take in protecting your IP logically is to make an
estimate of its value. If a copyright will provide sufficient protection
you’re looking at the low-cost, fast and fairly simple end of the
protective process. If on the other hand you want to register a
trademark or apply for a patent the expenses and time involved will be
significant.
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