We advise you on the types and strategies of IP protection that will best fit your business plan and the value proposition of your customers.
IP has become a prerequisite for success in the marketplace. There are several motivations for having IP protection. You may want to attract investors and increase their perceived value of your business, or you may want to deter competitors from copying and using your technology.
If you own IP, it means that you can have the rights to:
- derive benefits from manufacturing;
- license an invention;
- use registered marks on your packaging or use those marks for your advertisements;
- publish copies of original works; and
- deter competitors from infringement.
There are different types of protection available for different aspects of your business, such as inventions, logos, designs and original works of art, music and literature. The nature of what you would like to protect and the desired outcomes also affect the best options for protection.
Types of IP Protection
The key forms of intellectual property protection are patents for inventions, design rights and copyright for the creation of a design, and trade marks for distinctive brands or products. Depending on the particular circumstances different protection might be applicable to different aspects of your business development, from product design to service delivery to marketing to licensing for expanding business abroad. IP rights are territorial and are registered in each country where protection is sought, for instance for patents and trademarks, and the protection will be governed by each country's own legislation.
Patents
Patents protect new and non-obvious technical inventions for up to 20 years in exchange for public disclosure of the invention.
Designs
Design rights can protect the overall appearance of a design, excluding features dictated by technical function.
Trade Marks
Trade Marks are words, phrases or designs that distinguish products or services a business provides from its competitors.