Patents are the most commonly sought form of IP protection for commercialising university research. They relate to how something works, preventing the unauthorised usage of a process or invention. In order to qualify for a patent, the idea must be new, it must be directly applicable within an industry and it must include a degree of invention
Copyrights are commonly applied in creative industries, because they protect recorded works of many forms including literature, film, art, music and radio broadcasts. A copyright gives the author legal ownership, and equipping them to take legal action in the case of plagiarism or infringement.
Trademarks identify your particular product or organisation – and it can be issued for a name, slogan, symbol or otherwise as long as it is not already in common usage.
Designs protect the visual appearance of physical articles, surface decorations, GUIs (graphical user interfaces), computer icons and the like. In the UK there are two types of design right.
- UK registered design – protects against substantially similar versions of your design.
- UK unregistered design – protects against exact copies of your design.
Trade Secrets protect pieces of information such as methods, ingredients or formulas that are secret and have commercial value.
Which intellectual property right is the best fit for the IP in my business?