If you produce something through intellectual or creative endeavours, what you have created is classed as 'intellectual property'. It is important to protect your intellectual property as if you do not other individuals or companies can take advantage of your creation and in many cases profit from it. Intellectual property covers a wide range of works; these include inventions, designs, symbols and artistic works. The way that you can protect your 'IP' depends on what it is you have created. There are four main categories of 'protection' - these are copyright, trade mark, patent and design. If you are looking to safeguard the rights to something that you have made you will need to understand the distinctions between the types of rights you can acquire.
A copyright is probably is easiest right to attain as you do not have to send off an application form or pay a fee to have one - copyrights can be applicable automatically. Copyrights protect creative intellectual property such as music, literature or film. The most important thing you need to do to gain a copyright on your work is to have fixed it somewhere outside of your own head - your work needs to be written down or recorded in order for a copyright to apply. In the United Kingdom copyrights will generally be applicable for the lifetime of the creator plus seventy years after their death. Sound recording is copyrighted for a marginally shorter time - lifetime plus fifty years.
If you have invented a product or have come up with a new process for making a product, you will not be covered by a copyright and will have to apply for a patent. In order to do this you should not have publicly revealed your product or process before you have applied for a patent. You will also have to pay a fee in order to gain a patent, unlike copyright it is not a right that you can automatically gain. Patents are important as they provide protection for your inventions. If something you have invented is patented no one else can use it, sell it or make it without your permission. Patents last for twenty years, as long as they are renewed annually, but are not applicable worldwide. In general you will have to apply for patents in each country of interest within a year of first filing a patent.
In terms of branding for your work or product, a trademark can be useful. A trademark is defined as a sign that can be used to distinguish a product from other similar products. A trademark could be a logo, a symbol, a word or a picture. Examples of famous trademarks are Nokia, 'Maybe she's born with it. Maybe it's Maybelline' and the McDonald's 'M' logo. Trademarks can make your brand stand out and can make it memorable in terms of advertising. In the United Kingdom trademarks can last forever, but do have to be renewed every ten years. Using a trademark will make sure that no one else can use your logos or slogans on their own products and benefit from it.
The other main way of protecting your intellectual property is through the designs of your product. In the United Kingdom you can gain automatic protection for the 3-d shape and configuration of an original design. This is called having Design Right. This will last for 15 years after the design was originally created. Having Design Right, however, does not protect two-dimensional designs or any surface patterns - but you can protect these by registering your design. Having a registered design will protect the appearance of your product and will stop anyone else from being able to manufacture or sell a product that your design is applied to. Registered designs can last up to 25 years if they are renewed every five years.
There are many different types of intellectual property and a number of ways of protecting it. You will need to think about what your product is, for example whether it is a literary work or an invention, and how it needs to be protected, whether by copyright, trademark, patent, design or a combination.
© Izzy Evans 2012
If you need advice on Intellectual Property or simply want to find out more you can visit Intellectual Property Solicitors London
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