“Intellectual” Property? Sounds Made Up.
What is intellectual property? Simply put, intellectual property protects innovation. The “intellectual” in intellectual property means just that: intellectual property protects intangible products and ideas of the human mind.
There are four types of intellectual property: patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets.
Patents protect inventions: “new and useful” processes, machines, manufactures, and compositions of matter. Patent protection requires filing for and receiving a federal patent that describes your invention in detail.
Copyrights protect the arts: “original works of authorship” like books, music, paintings, movies, and similar artistic works. Copyright protection is provided by simply creating the original work, but there are some benefits for filing for a federal copyright registration.
Trademarks protect brands: “source identifying indicia” like words, phrases, and symbols. You can start gaining trademark rights by simply using a brand in commerce, but you can also file an application for a federal trademark registration that offers a greater scope of rights and protection.
Trade Secrets protect secrets: “valuable, proprietary information” kept secret from others. Trade secret rights are established by keeping the valuable, proprietary information secret; there is no registration process.
Want to learn more about trademarks? Check out our posts on I Think I Understand IP, But Can You Give Me An Example?, Texture (Non-Traditional) Marks, and Word (Traditional) Marks.
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