Protect Your Ideas – Top Ways To Guard Your Intellectual Property

With the ever-increasing ease in which information can spread, it is becoming harder to secure your intellectual property or product ideas and ensure they are not unfairly recreated or produced by someone else. Whether you are a small start-up or a multinational organisation, taking steps to protect your intellectual property should be a priority within your business.

What exactly is intellectual property?

The term intellectual property is commonly used, however many people are unsure of its exact meaning. Put simply, it is any product, idea or work that resulted from creative thought. Examples include manuscripts, designs, inventions, business names or confidential information.

If you come up with a great idea, design or product, you want to make sure that no one else has the right to take that product and claim it as their own. Intellectual property is protected and governed by various national and international laws, depending on where the idea was created, what the idea is and many other determining factors.

Steps to secure your intellectual property

There are a number of key steps you can take to protect your business and its products and ideas. By following these basic rules suggested by Prime Lawyers, you will be less likely to face issues with intellectual property theft and be adequately covered should a problem arise.

1. Register your idea

Contact a patent or intellectual property attorney and register your idea. It is important that the exact and minute details of your product are written down and registered to distinguish it from any similar ideas. It is also important to consider where your product may end up in the future and if there are any overseas laws or regulations that you need to consider.

2. Don’t talk about it

Before you have had the chance to adequately secure your intellectual property, avoiding discussing your idea. Be careful who you trust with this vital information and do not promote your idea in any sort of public forum. Until you have officially secured your intellectual property, anyone can take your idea and create it for themselves.

If you are working in a partnership, it is recommended that you speak with an attorney and sign non-disclosure agreements.

3. Record your idea in detail

Ensuring you have detailed drawings, descriptions, plans and general records that can prove you have been working on your idea will help if anyone challenges intellectual property ownership. Ensure the information is dated to show when you were working on the idea.

4. Apply for a trademark

Once you have a business name and logo for your idea, register an original trademark. A memorable trademark will help you stand out from any competitors and can help in promotion of your product in the future. You should also use the correct copyright symbols on all documentation and development of your product. This will further enhance your ownership of your idea.

5. Get a patent

Patents can be purchased to cover a wide variety of physical products ideas and designs. While they can cost up to $200,000, if your idea is truly groundbreaking, it can be a very good investment for the future of the product.

6. Make the investment

Securing your intellectual property rights can be costly and time consuming, however putting in the effort now may pay off significantly if any issues arise in the future.

[This piece was sponsored and written by Prime Lawyers]