The Importance of Copyright, Patent, and Trademark
It is essential to protect your intellectual property (IP) like scripts, inventions, books, movies, designs, and other creations from being wrongly used without permission. Copyright, Patent, and Trademark are the standard intellectual property rights for which owners of creative work apply. It is vital to know all about these IP rights so that you can register for them quickly.
Features of Copyright, Patent, and Trademark
To correctly understand the differences, let us study the three rights in detail.
Copyright: Copyright is the legal right given to the intellectual property owner to protect his creative work from being copied, translated, or sold without permission by a third party.
Features:
- It covers original works both published and unpublished, and includes dramatic, literary, musical, and artistic works, along with film and sound recordings.
- It is governed by the Copyright Act, 1957 and the Copyright Rule, 1958.
- Only the owner has the right to reproduce, distribute, display, or perform the created work publicly.
- Copyright is valid for the lifetime of the author, and an extra 60 years from the year of his death.
- The author gets exclusive rights over the Copyright the moment the work is created.
- If an employee is doing work on behalf of someone, then the employee receives the Copyright and not the employer.
- It is not solely content-based but mainly safeguards the form of expression. For example, if a movie is from the book, then the filmmaker and the author of the book will get the exclusive rights for their works.
- There is no need for mandatory registration of Copyright.
- Any work not noted or recorded in any tangible form, such as ideas, concepts, or procedures, are ineligible for copyright protection.
- Any work that has information commonly available for everyone and can be accessed from public documents or other sources, such as calendars, are also not eligible for Copyright.
- It is limited to the boundary of your country, and there is no global copyright law.
- There is no symbolic representation for Copyright
- No provisional application is required.
Trademark: Any logo, graphic, slogan, colour pattern, sound, name, or taste that provides a unique identity to your product or service can form a registered trademark.
Features:
- It is governed by the Trademark Act, 1999 and Trademark Rules, 2002
- A trademark is valid in India for ten years from the date when registration is accepted. It can be renewed after the period is over by paying a prescribed fee.
- It allows the owner the right to prevent any third party from using his trademark without permission. The owner can allow a party to use his trademark by making a payment.
- It is valid only within India’s boundaries, and for registering internationally, you need to apply to the respective foreign nations.
- The trademark needs to be unique and should be capable of being represented in a graphic form.
- It enables you to create a brand for your product or service that will help your business to grow.
- Also, it protects reputed brand owners from counterfeiters, who copy or use similar names to market sub-standard products and thus fosters fair competition.
- It enables consumers to choose their products wisely
- Registration usually takes around 12 to 18 months
- Symbolic representation is used for a trademark.
- It does not require a provisional application but needs a trademark search.
Patent: A patent can be applied for when an invention is made, or formula is created. The creation also needs to have some industrial utility.
Features:
- It is governed by the Trademark Act, 1999 and Trademark Rules, 2002.
- A trademark is valid in India for ten years from the date when registration is accepted. It can be renewed after the period is over by paying a prescribed fee.
- It allows the owner the right to prevent any third party from using his trademark without permission. The owner can allow a party to use his trademark by making a payment.
- It is valid only within India’s boundaries, and for registering internationally, you need to apply to the respective foreign nations.
- The trademark needs to be unique and should be capable of being represented in a graphic form.
- It enables you to create a brand for your product or service that will help your business to grow.
- Also, it protects reputed brand owners from counterfeiters, who copy or use similar names to market sub-standard products and thus fosters fair competition.
- It enables consumers to choose their products wisely
- Registration usually takes around 12 to 18 months.
- Symbolic representation is used for a trademark.
- It does not require a provisional application but needs a trademark search.
It is vital to protect your intellectual property from inappropriate use. 3E Accounting is a leading firm specializing in stress-free and customized solutions for all types of businesses and will provide necessary assistance for Copyright, Patent, and Trademark registration. Contact us so we can help you.
3E Accounting India
3E Accounting India is a corporate service provider and accounting firm assisting clients with company formation and incorporation. We offer company secretary and business-related services in India.
