Intellectual property (IP) refers to the creations of the mind such as inventions, artistic and literary works, symbols, designs, names, and images that are used in commerce. IP is protected by law through patents, trademarks, and copyrights which enable people to earn recognition or derive financial gains from what they have created. By striking a balance between the interests of the inventors and the general public, the IP system aims to create an environment where creativity and innovation can flourish. Copyright is the term that is applied to describe the rights of the creators over their artistic and literary works. It covers items such as books, music, films, sculptures, computer programs, paintings, advertisements, maps, and technical drawings. The patent refers to the exclusive rights that are given to an invention. It gives the inventor the right to decide if their work can be used by others or not. Lastly, a trademark is a sign that distinguishes the goods or services of one enterprise from those of the competitors.
Intellectual property should be perceived as a set of rights of the author and other copyright holders that allow them to dispose of these very intangible objects, to prohibit and allow their use by third parties who have such intentions. There is a whole list of different types of intellectual property that fall under legislative protection:
- Copyright, intended to regulate the relations that develop in the case of the creation and use of scientific works, as well as works from the field of literature and art. A prerequisite here is the existence in an objective form of the original result of creative activity.
- Related rights are granted to works to which copyright does not apply due to lack of creativity. This kind of protection is needed by performing musicians, producers of phonograms and broadcasting.
- Patent law is a system of legal norms, according to which the tasks of protecting inventions, utility models and industrial designs are solved. A prerequisite here is obtaining a patent.
- Means of individualization are united by the need for legal protection of marketing designations. This category of IP includes trademarks, trade names, domain names, appellations of origin.
- Production secrets (know-how) are technologies, knowledge and skills that have no analogues. Protection in this case takes the form of a regime of trade secrets, containing advantages in terms of competitiveness (World Trade Organization). The protection of this type of IP consists in limiting the number of dedicated employees, using a non-disclosure agreement, and eliminating the possibility of identifying a know-how object.
- Non-traditional IP objects, such as topologies of integrated circuits, and selection achievements.
Thus, it can be concluded that there are many types of intellectual property, and each of them is protected by the state and is private and inviolable.
Intellectual property could be defined as distinct creations of people having exclusive rights for recognition by the law. Under the law protecting the intellectual property, owners enjoy exclusive rights granted towards the intangible assets. The term continues to be used under different circumstances, to describe numerous unrelated concepts. The terminology became commonplace in the twentieth century with the invention of statutes regarding copyright and patent law. Different countries’ constitutions contain legislative power for protection of intellectual property. The development of intellectual property rights continued, leading to the formation of World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in 1967. Formation of this agency marked the beginning of actual protection of intellectual property by the law.
Intellectual property rights granted by constitutions come in different forms. The most common ones include trademarks, patents, copyrights and industrial design rights. Some jurisdictions, however, also include trade secrets among intellectual property rights. The objective of intellectual property rights lies in protection of noble ideas. Intellectual property protection significantly encourages innovation. Through protecting other people creations, necessity arises for individuals to create their own trade marks. Making creations similar to protected creations amounts to infringement of intellectual property rights. Owners of these rights instigate legal proceedings in the eventual occurrence of infringement of their rights. This significantly helps prevent the use of protected intellectual property by unauthorized individuals.