Introduction to Intellectual Property

Introduction to Intellectual Property

 What is Intellectual Property?

-Most countries throughout the world have developed a
series of rules that attempt to protect the results of innovative
thinking; and these are generally referred to as Intellectual
Property.

- Essentially the value that is gained or added to a business

or product from a creative process. There are a lot of different
kinds of Intellectual Property laws, but they all have the same
goal; to allow creative thinkers to benefit financially from and to
protect their inventions/ creations.
How does Intellectual Property Law Work?

-IP laws are designed to try and protect business assets. The
kind of IP laws that will be relevant to a business depend on the
types of asset a business has. However some of the business
assets that will normally merit the protection of IP laws include
business brands; photographs; books; computer software; and
paintings.
Why Should You Protect Your Assets?

-One may question why there is a need to go through what

might appear to be a complicated process of using IP laws to
protect business assets. An unfortunate reality of operating in
the commercial world is that competitors and imitators or
‘copycats’ will attempt to use the products of business that
have invested time, money and energy in the development of
their brands and products to their benefit. If a business makes
use of IP laws to protect its assets, this reduces the likelihood
of competitors copying their ideas. In some circumstances,
business rivals will still hope to make subtle changes to designs
in the hope of avoiding claims of IP infringement. However,
some IP laws will guard against even subtly changed products
from entering the market.
Why Should You Protect Your Assets?

-One may question why there is a need to go through what

might appear to be a complicated process of using IP laws to
protect business assets. An unfortunate reality of operating in
the commercial world is that competitors and imitators or
‘copycats’ will attempt to use the products of business that
have invested time, money and energy in the development of
their brands and products to their benefit. If a business makes
use of IP laws to protect its assets, this reduces the likelihood
of competitors copying their ideas. In some circumstances,
business rivals will still hope to make subtle changes to designs
in the hope of avoiding claims of IP infringement. However,
some IP laws will guard against even subtly changed products
from entering the market.
What are the Different Kinds of Intellectual Property
Rights?

-Most businesses develop and sell different kinds of products in

a given market. Modern IP law reflects this reality and a
comprehensive set of rules have been developed to protect
different kinds of business assets.
COPYRIGHT


Copyright is a kind of legal right that is designed to reward an
individual or business for the creation of, and investment in a
particular kind of product. In order for a particular kind of work
or product to be protected under the legislation, there are very
clear requirements that need to be met. The CDPA states that
before something will be protected, it must fall within one of the
following categories of work; literary, dramatic or musical work,
f ilms and sounds recordings, broadcasts, cable programmes or
published editions. It is important to note however, that the Act
does not allow artistic works, f il ms or broadcasts that were
made before 1 June 1957, or cable programmes made before 1
January 1985 to benefit from Copyright protection.

The creator or author of a piece of work, which falls within the

categories outlined above under the CDPA that holds the
copyright. Unlike many other kinds of protections afforded to
cre at ive works, copyright doe s not re quire any form of
a ppl i ca t i on proce ss. Unde r a num be r of i nt e r na t i ona l
agreements, copyright will arise automatically.
Trade Marks


A Trade Mark is another branch of the IP regime in the UK. They are
commonly discussed in relation to businesses, and their brand.
One of the ways that businesses differentiate themselves from
their competitors is to create a brand or corporate image that
identif ies it as distinct and unique among its competitors. It is not
uncommon that a great deal of time, effort and money has been
spent on creating a brand that will be a good representation of a
business. However, the brand of a business is vulnerable to
imitation by competitors if not properly guarded. This can be
achieved by a business registering its brand as their Trade Mark. In
law, a business’s brand is its Trade Mark. Examples of this include
WHSmith and Nike.

Assuming that a business brand meets the necessary criteria, it is

the business that holds the Trade Mark. However, as mentioned
above, a business must apply to the IPO to demonstrate that its
brand is sufficiently distinct to warrant Trade Mark protection.
Patents


 Businesses operating in the creative industries often need to
break technological boundaries, in order to survive in such a
competitive environment. This normally involves a significant
investment in time and expertise. As a reward for a
business’s investment, Patents allow new inventions to be
protected. To be more precise, a Patent is designed to
protect not only a new inventions but also how it works.
 If a Patent is awarded to a particular invention in the UK, this
protects it under British civil law. This means that no one will
be able to make, use, import or sell the invention that is
protected by the Patent within the UK, without the owner’s
permission
 A Patent, like many other kinds of IP right, does not arise
automatically. Where a business or individual is looking to
protect their invention, they must apply to the IPO.
Design Rights


 Intellectual Property law is a fairly well understood system in
the UK. However, of all the kinds of legal protection afforded
to the results of one or another creative process, Design
Rights are often the most unheard of.
 When a product is made or developed it will have a particular
appearance, or a ‘Design’. Businesses and inventors will often
hope to protect some or all of the appearance of a given
product, and this is where Design Rights can become useful.
It is important to note that there are two ways to protect the
design of a product;
By ‘Registered Design’


Registered Designs are a more formal kind of legal protection
afforded to product s t han Design Right s. They give t he
complete right of ownership over the look of a product. However,
unlike Design Rights, a Registered Design must be applied for
from the IPO. Registered Designs will only be granted where a
look is suf ficiently novel, compared to other products already
available in a given market.

The individual or business that applies to the IPO to have

Registered Design Rights will own them, following a successful
application. However it is important to note that Registered
Designs, like unregistered Design Rights, can be sold or licensed.
Thank you for not listening!