What is intellectual property?
The World Intellectual Property Organization defines intellectual property as the creations of the mind. From this point of view, we can say that intellectual property is a very broad topic as it covers anything from a secret chemical formula, name, business strategy, story plot, artistic works, etc. In the US, it is estimated that companies spend an average of $300 billion annually for intellectual property protection.
Types of Intellectual Property
There are four types of intellectual property. These are the following:
• Patents – this is a process by which you make the public known that a certain intellectual property is yours. Patent covers all properties that are tangible – inventions, equipment, and so on.
• Trademark – this refers to a name, phrase, logo, or anything needed to establish a company’s brand and identity.
• Copyrights – this protects written works like articles, essays, novels, stories, research, poems and literary
prints, and so on. Even written works posted on the web are also covered by copyright laws. Under these laws, no one is allowed to copy a phrase from another without consent.
• Trade secrets – these refer to products that are confidential in nature such as a drug formula.