The US Constitution gives US Congress the power
to issue intellectual property rights to “promote the progress of sciences and
arts.” So, copyrights, trademarks and patents are a means to reach that end.
Each has a distinct function and varying requirements, but the main idea is to protect
overall innovation and the flow of ideas. Here’s a breakdown:
Copyrights: The purpose of a copyright is to
protect an author’s expression of ideas. The key is that it is the actual
expression that is protected here rather than the underlying idea. Copyrights
are generally used for things like books or plays or any type of art really.
The author has the exclusive right to copy and reproduce the work so a
copyright will be infringed by any unauthorized copying of the work. A
copyright will attach as soon as an author fixes a work in a tangible medium,
meaning as soon it is written down, it can not be copied.
Trademarks: The purpose of trademark protection is
to protect a company’s name or logo from infringement by competitors.
Basically, a protected trademark will give a company the exclusive right to use
a certain “mark” in the marketplace. The “mark” can be a name, logo, or phrase,
etc. The idea is that your name and logo should stand for what your company
stands for and if a competitor can come in and use your logo, then they will be
able to free-ride off of the goodwill that you have built up in the
marketplace. The protection of a trademark is sometimes limited by region or
industry or in some cases it can be international, but in general will be
limited by the scope of your use.
Patents: A patent is issued to protect an
invention. The invention can be any new and useful product or process or an
improvement on an existing product or process. The requirements for a patent are probably
the most strict because it provides the inventor the most powerful rights,
allowing the inventor to exclude use of the invention by others without
payment. A patent will give the inventor a limited monopoly on the invention so
you really have to prove that you deserve it before it will be granted by the
US PTO.
ANT Lawyers - A Law firm in Vietnam is
supported by a team of experienced patent, trademark, design attorneys with
qualification and skills handling full range of legal services relating
to intellectual property rights in Vietnam. We
have specialized in the preparation and registration of patents, trademarks and
designs for our clients.
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