Why it’s Important

If you go to all the determination of developing a creation, you want to be sure that no one comes along to steal your work. You may be astonished to know that your concepts can be legally protected – solicitors call this the shield of “intellectual property”. The numerous ways that intellectual property can be protected are through the laws of:

Copyright
Design
Trademark
Patents

What Laws Apply

There are various laws that relate to intellectual-property:

Copyright Act
Trademarks Act
Designs Act
Patents Act

Copyright

This is pretty much what it says: it halts someone replicating the creative work of a person unless they have been given permission to do this. This can be attained by compensating a fee/royalty, and/or recognizing the creator, and/or that the use is authorized.

In case, copyright your product, there is no requirement of formal steps. It is automatic as soon as the product is created, for example, when you write a letter or make a sketch. Keep in mind copyright does not protect ideas.

Copyright is automatic – you don’t need to register it, although there are services where you can do this. The benefit is that you then have official proof of the creation of the product.

In general, copyright protects works such as:

Literary works;
Film, music and sound recordings;
Broadcasts;
Other artistic works, etc.

Copyright of Designs: for designs to be protected for up to 10 years under the Designs Act, it must be registered with IP Australia. Individuals wishing to manufacture products or make multiple copies of the artistic work must seek legal advice as there are legal ramifications to this action under the Design Act.

Who Owns Copyright?

Generally speaking, the creator, producer, maker, publisher or broadcaster would own the copyright to the work. Intellectual property created by employees in the course of employment is owned by the employer. Copyright is owned by the Government in cases where individuals are working under the direction or control of the Government, including freelancers and contractors.

For commissioned works, rules vary depending on the date of creation. Photographs taken for private purposes on or after 30 July 1998 are owned by the client. Copyright ownership belongs to the photographer if the photographs were taken for commercial purposes. In all other cases, copyright ownership of commissioned works generally belongs to the creator or maker of the material.

Copyright Infringement

When a person or organization uses copyright material without the owner’s permission this is regarded as copyright infringement. This can occur when a substantial element of the original work or material is used, or when a new work utilizes an important or distinctive part of the original work. Copyright infringement may also occur when pirated material is involved, when importing copyright material for commercial purposes, and when materials are used in inappropriate ways that constitute infringement. Fair dealing, personal use, and educational or government use is not considered infringement.

Designs

A design is that fragment of a product that differentiates it from similar products. The design does not refer to the product itself, but majorly its appearance. For example, the design of a Rolls Royce if different from the design of a Mercedes.

Designs can only be protected if they are listed under the Designs Act. For registration, the design must be New; and Original.

Trademark

This protects the name or the identification of a product. It can be important if someone tries to hijack the name – if you have registered the trademark you can take action to stop them.

You don’t have to register a trademark. If it has been used for a certain time it may be recognized by the common law. But in that case, you would have to prove the point in court rather than relying on your registered trademark.

Another advantage of registration is that it permits the owner to use the mark throughout the country, and you can assign, transfer or sell the rights in the trademark.

What Trademarks can be Registered?

Not all trademarks can be registered. As per the Trademarks Act, a mark must be either:

An invented word e.g. “Lawforyou/Law4U”;
A group of words that are innovative;
A distinctive mark or logo; or
A signature.

Remember, just having a trade or company name is dissimilar to a trademark. It may be the basis for proving a common law right to a name, but for conviction, you should register a name.

How to Register a Trademark

IP India registers trademarks and patents and provides information on the protection of intellectual property. You should:

Check the Register of Trademarks and the applications awaiting to see if there are any alike marks in the same classification of products and services; and

Apply for registration if there is no conflict. If there is a fight and you want to retain the trademark, get legal assistance.

For more details on Trademark check Here

Patents

This is the system to guard something you have invented. You can register it with IP India.

A patent permits the creator to have the exclusive right to make and sell the invention.

In case of registering a patent, an invention must be:

New; and Inventive.

Please check Here for

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