| In most cases, the originator of the work owns the rights
to that Intellectual Property. There are some exceptions,
such as “works for hire”, when the rights may
belong to the employer who paid for the work.
According to US patent law, the rights enable the owner to
exclude anyone from “using, making, selling, offering
to sell or importing” the IP without the owner’s
permission. The owner of the IP can sell or give their rights
to others. They can also license their rights or use them
as loan collateral.
Patents, Trademarks and Copyrights protect Intellectual Property
rights. Each of these protects different types of IP.
- A patent typically protects new inventions, processes,
machines and original designs, as well as distinct new varieties
of plants. Patents are granted on the basis of originality,
novelty and usefulness. The invention must also be “non-obvious,”
meaning that it is not merely a trivial or obvious extension
of something that already exists.
- A trademark can be a word, a symbol, a name or device,
typically used in business to distinguish a product from
its competitor’s products. Companies trademark brand
names, so competitors cannot use a name so similar it would
confuse consumers. Servicemarks are similar to trademarks
and current legislative trends are moving to give servicemarks
the same level of protection as trademarks.
- A copyright protects the authors of original works of
literature, art, music and other intellectual works including
software. The copyright protects the form of expression,
but not the factual content of the material.
Other types of Intellectual Property include:
- Trade secrets are confidential information, including
“know-how” that makes all the difference in
the success of a business by giving it a competitive edge.
Trade secrets are legally protected from misuse, even though
they do not have to be registered. The trade secret is considered
“secret” as long as the company chooses to keep
it that way. Confidentiality agreements, sometimes called
NDAs, are commonly used when discussing inventions, trade
secrets or other IP. Know-how includes the experience and
ways of doing things that make doing a job easier, but does
not include specific skills.
- Designs, depending on the type, can be protected either
by patent or copyright. Patents protect industrial designs,
while copyright protects a sculpture. In the US, design
patents typically last for 14 years.
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