IPR
According to the World Intellectual Property Organization, Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind: inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, images, and designs used in commerce. Intellectual property in a simple sense is a creation of the human intelligence or mind. The reasoning for intellectual property is to encourage innovation without the fear that a competitor will steal the idea and / or take the credit for it.
Intellectual Property Rights do not differ from other property rights. They allow their owner to completely benefit from his/her product which was initially an idea that developed and crystallized. They also entitle him/her to prevent others from using, dealing or tampering with his/her product without prior permission from him/her. He/she can in fact legally sue them and force them to stop and compensate for any damages.
Types of IPR
- Trademarks
- Copyright
- Patents
- Geographical Indications
- Industrial Design
- Trade Secrets
- Plant Breeders Right
Trademark
A trademark is a recognizable insignia, phrase, word, or symbol that denotes a specific product and legally differentiates it from all other products of its kind. A trademark exclusively identifies a product as belonging to a specific company and recognizes the company's ownership of the brand.
Similar to a trademark, a "service mark" identifies and distinguishes the source of a service rather than a product, and the term “trademark” is often used to refer to both trademarks and service marks. Trademarks are generally considered a form of intellectual property.
Copyright
Copyright refers to the legal right of the owner of intellectual property. In simpler terms, copyright is the right to copy. This means that the original creators of products and anyone they give authorization to are the only ones with the exclusive right to reproduce the work.
Copyright law gives creators of original material the exclusive right to further use and duplicate that material for a given amount of time, at which point the copyrighted item becomes public domain.
Patent
Patent, is a legal document granted by the government giving an inventor the exclusive right to make, use, and sell an invention for a specified number of years. Patents are also available for significant improvements on previously invented items.
The goal of the patent system is to encourage inventors to advance the state of technology by awarding them special rights to benefit from their inventions. Books, movies, and works of art cannot be patented, but protection is available for such items under the law of copyright. Patent law is one branch of the larger legal field known as intellectual property, which also includes trademark and copyright law.
Geographical Indications
A geographical indication (GI) is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin. In order to function as a GI, a sign must identify a product as originating in a given place. In addition, the qualities, characteristics or reputation of the product should be essentially due to the place of origin. Since the qualities depend on the geographical place of production, there is a clear link between the product and its original place of production.