What is an example of an intellectual property?

Intellectual property (IP) exists in many forms. From the name of your business to an innovative new process or product, IP can help you stand out from your competitors, enhance your market value and turn ideas into profit-making assets.

Examples of intellectual property

Your business may already have a range of IP. IP can be any of the following:

• brands and logos
• product names
• inventions and products
• original software
• designs
• shape and appearance of a product
• music
• books
• poems
• paintings
• photography
• other kinds of creative work

IP can be very valuable and should be protected. The type of IP protection you can get depends on what you have created.

Types of intellectual property rights

There are four main types of IP rights:

• patents
• trade marks
• copyright
• designs

It is important to understand exactly how these different types of IP rights can apply to your business. Browse our detailed guides on patents, trade marks, copyright and design to find out more about each.

Find out what IP you own

If you own a business, you likely own some type of IP. You can carry out an intellectual property audit to determine what IP assets you have and their value to your business.

To get a better understanding of IP and how to manage it, you can also use the Intellectual Property Office's IP for Business toolkit. It offers:

copyright protects creative works in a tangible form; this includes books, movies, music, games, artwork, and other kinds of creative products. You see and hear examples of copyrighted intellectual property every day. Every expression of original thought and creativity is protected by copyright. Although a copyright may be registered with the Library of Congress Copyright Office, the creator of such an expression holds the copyright—and all the rights that go with it—regardless of registration.

What Is a Trademark or a Service Mark?

A trademark, another common type of IP, is registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) as a mark that distinguishes the source of goods or services. Trademarks are an interestingly broad example of intellectual property. A trademark can be anything that differentiates a particular company from its competitors, including:

• A logo
• A slogan
• A sound
• A color

Trademarking may overlap with copyright; for instance, a logo may be copyrightable as an artistic creation and also registered as a trademark. However, a trademark may protect words, designs, and other elements that are not considered copyrightable. Like copyrights, trademarks may be protected under common law and the Lanham Act even if they are not registered.

What Is a Patent?

patents are special forms of IP registered with the USPTO; they protect inventions and functional designs for products. In exchange for publicly disclosing the invention or design, the inventor gains exclusive rights to the use of the patented device for a set amount of time, currently 20 years for utility and plant patents, 14 years for design patents. A utility patent covers inventions, that is, non-obvious and useful processes, machines, manufactured articles, or compositions of matter; plant patents are issued for new varieties of plants; and design patents protect ornamental designs.

Unlike the creative property protected by trademarks or copyrights, practical inventions and designs are protected only if a patent granted by the USPTO. However, patentable inventions can be protected as trade secrets under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act as long as they provide economic value and reasonable measures are taken to ensure their secrecy. Some companies and inventors choose to rely on trade secret protection to avoid the disclosure required to win a patent.

This article contains general legal information and does not contain legal advice. Rocket Lawyer is not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. The law is complex and changes often. For legal advice, please ask a lawyer.

Every business aims to manage and protect its assets. Intellectual property is an asset, and as such, it needs monitoring and protection. Intellectual property protection is especially crucial in the ever-growing and fast-changing digital landscape.

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Table of Contents

Types of intellectual property

Intellectual property is an intangible asset created to protect creations such as designs, images, names, texts, and more.

Intellectual property examples in business include trademarks, copyrights, patents, and trade secrets that can gain IP protection.

Trademarks

Trademarks are the names, phrases, symbols, designs or a combination of these things that differentiate your brand from others in your industry. Trademarks must be distinctive so as not to create a likelihood of confusion and should be used in commerce.

An example of trademark intellectual property is a name that identifies the origin of your goods or services. There are other examples, such as symbols and colors.

Copyrights

Copyrights protect original works of authorship. They encompass literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works such as books, articles, poems, movies, songs, recordings, paintings, logo designs, website content, computer software, and architecture.

Images, for example, are significant in digital branding and as they are copyrighted, they become part of your brand assets. You have the exclusive right to copy, display, and reproduce images that belong to your brand.

Patents

Patents are tools to protect innovation, granted for new, useful inventions. In the U.S., utility patents protect the way a product works, while design patents protect the way a product looks, and there are also plant patents. In other countries, there may be specific laws to cover industrial designs.

Trade secrets

This IP protection shields confidential information that is commercially valuable and known only to a limited group of people.

Although the above are the main types of intellectual property (IP), there are other examples of IP, such as geographical indications.

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Intellectual property protection examples

Every day, we witness intellectual property protection in action. When you start noticing intellectual property examples in business, you see that they are everywhere.

Trademarks protect brands, and brands protect their trademarks. Names are trademarks (Google, Walmart, Coca-Cola), slogans (“Think Different” by Apple). and designs (like the Twitter bird or McDonald’s yellow M / Golden Arches).

We can also look from the industry perspective. Sneakers are a great example of trademark intellectual property.

As far as sneakers go, consumers have trademarks, logos, and designs that they recognize and associate with a specific brand.

The three-stripes adidas trademark is a known example, as are the Nike “Swoosh” trademark, Puma, Converse and many more examples of athletic footwear brands.

JUST DO IT is another known Nike trademark.

In 2020, the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) accepted Nike’s opposition to the registration of the proposed mark JUST DREW IT! For athletic apparel.

The TTAB agreed there is a likelihood of confusion and likely dilution of Nike’s famous mark.

Luxury brands provide some of the most iconic intellectual property protection examples.

Brands can also be identified through one color or a combination of colors in a category. Color marks consist of one or more colors used on particular objects.

Do you recognize the following examples?

Other examples include the red soles of high-heels dress shoes, where the rest of the shoe is not red by Louboutin; brown for parcel delivery trucks and uniforms by UPS; canary yellow for 3M sticky notes; magenta for T-Mobile; and others.

Prior to the digital world, copyright issues were not as prevalent. Now, photographers, artists, writers, and other creators have their work reproduced too often with no regard to their IP rights.

One of the most common examples is counterfeiters who use the authentic images of a brand or a product to mislead consumers into believing they have the original product.

Patents protect innovation. Although not necessary for a product to be successful, they can be a valuable tool.

Steve Jobs, for example, filed a 1980 design patent for a “personal computer”. Another well-known patent associated with Jobs is Apple’s touch-screen technology.

Trade secrets can also be a powerful tool.

WIPO tells the story of Angostura Limited, whose main IP is almost 200 years old. The company, based in Trinidad and Tobago, produces the ANGOSTURA® aromatic bitters, used as an integral ingredient in cocktails.

As for trade secrets, according to the WIPO story, only five company directors are allowed to enter the room where they mix the ingredients that make up the Angostura Bitters, keeping the recipe a secret since 1824.

Online intellectual property protection

Almost all brands, big and small, have established their businesses online. As online markets become more dominant and e-commerce rapidly grows, online threats become more widespread and sophisticated. Online brand protection becomes crucial.

Having an online brand protection strategy in place helps shield your brand against online abuses, such as trademark infringements, cybersquatting, counterfeits, and other unauthorized activity.

Online brand protection includes:

1. Intellectual property rights – Protect your intellectual property rights (IPR) from being infringed. Whether it is your patent, trademark, logo, copyrights or URLs, it is essential to protect them.
2. Anti-counterfeiting – Counterfeit goods imitate a product by a genuine brand, often a trusted one. Counterfeits are so prevalent that they affect every industry: automotive parts, electronics, fashion, pharmaceuticals, sports, luxury goods, toys, and practically any other industry. Such lucrative trade results in more sophisticated sellers, making it even more crucial for brands to have an anti-counterfeiting strategy and the technology to support it online.
3. Gray market protection – Parallel import is the import of original goods into a market without the permission of the intellectual property owner. Since these goods are non-counterfeits, they are often referred to as “gray market products”. Gray market sellers may be unauthorized sellers but may also be authorized sellers selling out of territory or non-compliance with the brand pricing policy. Such sellers often introduce unfair competition. Although parallel import is legal, it is not impossible to remove listings belonging to parallel import sellers off the market.
4. Elimination of impersonation– In social commerce, illicit third parties create accounts that imitate the authentic brand and sell their fake products or otherwise harm users with phishing or malware. The same is true for rogue websites. Typosquatting refers to websites that purposely use an address similar to that of the original brand so users that make a typo land on their website.

Wiser online brand protection

Whether you wish to fight counterfeits, prevent trademark, copyright and brand infringements, you need online brand protection services.

At Wiser Market, we partner with brands to combat counterfeits and intellectual property infringements with advanced technology and industry expertise.

Wiser Market anti-counterfeit agency monitoring system is advanced and scalable, and our team of experts posses unique eCommerce know-how.

Wiser Market’s highly effective, long-term online brand protection strategy safeguards your revenue and brand reputation, with a proven track record of over 95% success rate.

With Wiser Market, your brand has a comprehensive IP protection solution, from detection to enforcement of your IP rights, so you can focus on growing your business.

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WiserTip: For best online brand protection, there is no “one size fits all.” At Wiser Market, we create an online brand protection strategy tailored to your business’s unique needs.

FAQ

What is online intellectual property protection?

Digital brand protection services counter online threats and protect your intellectual property assets. Anytime, anywhere. Whether you wish to fight fakes, protect your domain name, prevent trademark, copyright and brand infringements, or combat gray market selling and knockoffs, use Wiser Market’s online IP protection services. Effective online IP protection defends your profitability and reputation.

Contact Wiser Market online brand protection services.

What is brand abuse?

Brand abuse refers to a third party infringing on the intellectual property of a brand. Brand abuse can include:

• Counterfeiting
• Copyright infringement
• Domain name abuse

What are examples of copyright works?

Copyrights protect artistic works such as novels, poems, lyrics, images, movies, paintings, and sound recordings. In computing, they protect things like software applications and software codes. In business, copyrights protect content, business plans and proposals, designs, manuals, annual reports, and more.

What is online brand protection strategy?

The Wiser Method offers an effective online brand protection solution.

• Search – Applying technology to find online infringements across digital platforms. This includes marketplaces, websites, social media, and more.
• Analyze – After detection, our team analyzes all listings and categorizes them.
• Enforce – Our team of experts implements professional expertise to ensure each infringement is removed quickly and efficiently.

What are brand protection services?

Brand protection services combat brand abuse. They include analysis and enforcement of the intellectual property rights of brands. Do it the Wiser way!

How can authentic manufacturers remove unauthorized sellers?

Wiser Market offers a brand protection strategy that involves monitoring, detection, analysis, enforcement and prevention. A combination of scalable technology and professional expertise results in exceptionally high success rates.

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