Industrial Property rights (trademark, patent, utility model, and industrial design) and Intellectual Property (author’s rights or Copyright) are defined as exclusive and excluding rights that are granted to the owner over their intangible assets, granting them a monopoly (of commercial exploitation in different degrees and scope), during a certain time and in a specific territory.
What Is The Brand?
In the first place, the brand is defined as any sign capable of representation that can identify and distinguish, in the market, the products and services of one company from those of others. From a strategic perspective, the brand is the identifying element of a company or natural person in economic traffic. It is an intangible asset that can reach a great economic value.
In this way, according to the classification made by the consultancy Kantar, the most valuable brands internationally in 2021 are Amazon (684,000 million dollars), Apple (612,000 million dollars), and Google (458,000 million dollars). The trademark is the only Industrial Property right that can have an unlimited duration in time and must be renewed every ten years.
What Is A Patent?
For its part, the patent is the right granted to the inventor or owner of the exploitation rights of an invention. As a kind of “reward” for the time, effort, and investment used to develop the invention. However, for an invention to be protected by a patent, it must be new worldwide, not obvious to a person skilled in the art, and reproducible in industry. Unlike the trademark, the patent has a maximum duration of 20 years. Additionally, and for inventions with a lower degree of inventive activity, but equally novel, there is the figure of the utility model, with a maximum duration of 10 years.
What Is Industrial Design?
Industrial design is the figure that protects the external appearance of a product, that is, those visible characteristics that define it (lines, textures, shapes, colors, etc.) and that make the product attractive, giving it added value and uniqueness. For the design of a product to be eligible for protection, it must be new to the world and have a unique character. The general impression it produces on the informed user differs from the general impression produced by any other design and previously disclosed. The design has a maximum of 25 years and must be renewed every five years.
What Are Copyrights?
Finally, Copyright protects any literary, artistic, or scientific work that is original and expressed by any means or support (that is, that is perceptible through the senses). Unlike Industrial Property rights, in which registration is necessary for the right to be born, copyrights are recognized by their author from the very moment of the creation of the work. They are equally exercisable against third parties from the very moment of his birth. However, on certain occasions, its registration is recommended to justify or demonstrate the authorship, ownership, and scope of the work in question.
Copyright remains in force for the author’s life plus 70 years after his death, without the need for renewal. We advise you on the best strategy to follow from Integra to achieve optimal protection and defense of your intangible assets. We are at your disposal to help you make your effort profitable and transform your creativity and innovation into intangible assets that generate, in your favour, sustainable competitive advantages over time.
Also Read: How To Properly Protect A Smartphone?
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