|
Patent |
Trademark |
Copyright |
Typical Uses |
Uses the legal system to prevent or stop another party from making, using, offering for sale, or selling an invention that is claimed in an issued United States patent |
Uses the legal system to prevent or stop others from using a similar name in the marketplace in a way that is likely to confuse consumers |
Uses the legal system to prevent or stop unauthorized copying of certain types of works |
What does it cover? |
Used to register and protect ideas;
new and useful processes;
machines;
manufactures;
composition of matters;
any new and useful improvement of the above;
computer software;
business methods;
consumer gadgets. |
Names or symbols applied to goods or services which have the purpose of identifying the source of the goods or services. Trademarks and service marks help the consumer to distinguish goods or services that come from different sources. |
Used to protect the labor that you put into creating various works of art:
literary works;
musical works, including any accompanying words, lyrics;
dramatic works, including any accompanying music;
pantomimes and choreographic works;
pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works;
motion pictures and other audiovisual works;
sound recordings; and
architectural works;
source code (but not the ideas behind the code).
Copyrights do not protect ideas, procedures, processes, systems, methods of operation, concepts, principles, or discoveries. |
How is it registered? |
By submitting a detailed specification of your idea (with formal drawings) along with claims that identify your invention as a patent application to the U.S. Patent Office. The patent is not enforceable until the Patent Office approves, but you publicly announce that you are patent pending. |
By submitting an application to register the mark with the U.S. Trademark Office. Be careful of others using similar names or symbols. |
After creating a work and memorializing the work (paper, hard drive, etc.), submitting the work and the appropriate forms to the U.S. Copyright Office. |
Identified by |
Issued Patents
Patent No. #,###,###
Pat. No. #,###, ###
Non-issued Patents
Patent Pending
Pat. Pend. |
™
®
|
©
All rights reserved |
Real World Examples |
U.S. Patent No. 174,465 (Alexander Graham Bell’s Telephone)
U.S. Patent No. 7,345,671 (iPod)
U.S. Patent No. 7,024,381 (NetFlix)
U.S. Patent No. 223898 (Thomas Edison’s Light Bulb) |
Coca-Cola®
Google™
Aspirin®
Dell™ |
Star Wars (Series of Films)
Pink Floyd-The Wall (Album)
Harry Potter (Series of Books)
The Simpsons (Television Program) |
Some other types of intellectual property include trade secrets, employer/employee agreements, contracts, rights in one’s image or persona, etc.
What is the difference between a patent and a trademark?
Primarily, patents protect ideas whereas trademarks protect the public from being confused as to the source of goods or services.
Any new and useful idea can be patented – including a novel combination of old technologies. The classic example is: if pencils are old and erasers are old and you are the very first person to put an eraser on the end of a pencil, that combination is patentable. Novel business methods are now patentable. A business method is a way to make money regardless of the underlying “widget” technology. For most of our clients, business method protection is their broadest form of patent protection. Typically, patent protection lasts about 20 years, after which the ideas become public knowledge.
A trademark is any mark or symbol that identifies and distinguishes a product or service from other products and services on the market. Trademarks typically identify the origin of the product, create an image of consistent quality, and create consumer loyalty (known as goodwill). Trademark protection remains in force as long as a business continues to use the trademark in connection with their particular good or service.
