What is Intellectual Property?

Definition by WIPO
Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the
mind, inventions, literary and artistic works and
symbols, names, images and designs used in commerce
• Creativity (Creation Of The Mind)
 Creativity is the ability to Think / come up with new
idea
 Design new “inventions”
 Produce “works of art”
 Solve problems in new ways, or develop a new idea
based on an “original” knowledge.
 Novel or unconventional approach.
 Intellectual Property Right
• Idea Expression COPYRIGHT
• Idea Innovation Invention PATENT
• Idea Quality + Identity TRADEMARK
• Idea Appearance DESIGN
• Idea Keep Confidential and No Disclosure
TRADE SECRETS
Think away from the
Box

Generate Ideas
• IPR is not a new concept. It is believed that IPR initially started in
North Italy during the Renaissance era.
• In 1474, Venice issued a law regulating patents protection that
granted an exclusive right for the owner. The copyright dates back
to 1440 A.D. when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press
with replaceable/moveable wooden or metal letters.
• Late in the 19th century, a number of countries felt the necessity of
laying down laws regulating IPR.
• Globally, two conventions constituting the basis for IPR system
worldwide had been signed;
• Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (1883)
• Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works
(1886).
• Intellectual property is the product of the human intellect
including creativity concepts, inventions, industrial models,
trademarks, songs, literature, symbols, names, brands,
literary and artistic works; symbols, names and images used
in commerce. ....etc.
• Intellectual Property Rights do not differ from other
property rights. They allow their owner to completely
benefit from the product which was initially an idea that
developed and crystallized.
• IP also entitle the owner to prevent others from using,
dealing or tampering with his product without prior
permission from him. Owner can in fact legally sue them
and force them to stop and compensate for any damages.
• Protection of Intellectual Property Rights
• Protection of IPR allows the innovator, brand
owner, patent holder and copyright holder to
benefit from his/her work, labor and investment,
which does not mean monopoly of the intellect.
Such rights are set out in the International
Declaration of Human Rights, which provides for
the right to benefit from the protection of the
moral and physical interests resulting from the
right holder’s work; literal or artistic product.
 Intellectual
Property

Industrial
Copy Right
Property

Rights of
patents for industrial geographical
trademarks, literary works films, music Artistic Works Performers and
inventions designs indications.
Broadcasters
NATURE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
• Intangible Rights over Tangible Property
• Chose in Action
• Rights and Duties
• Co- Existence of Various Rights
• Statutory Requirements
• Territoriality
• Exhaustion of Rights
• Dynamism
• International Character
• Subject matter of Intellectual Property Protection
 Intangible Rights over Tangible
Property
• Intellectual property relates to the capacity of a man to
produce a new thing and present that thing so produced
before public to use
• There is no property as such in the thing so produced but in
the skill, judgment and labour of the mind which is
incorporated in the product. It creates more abstract
property interests in the tangible.
• IPR is conferred for the embodiment of ideas in a particular
work of authorship invention, symbol, design and so on.
• It is intangible property in the tangible objects. This type of
property cannot be seen but can be felt by senses.
• It allows the creators or owners to have the benefits from
their works when these are exploited commercially
 Chose in Action
• rights that are enforced only by legal action as opposed
to possessory rights.
• rights of ownership common to real and personal
property are common to IP also.
• IP is a property right and hence can be inherited,
bought, gifted, sold, licensed, assigned or mortgaged
• Legal systems in all nations attribute incidents of
property such as ownership, enjoyment, transferability
and transmissibility to IPR.
• IPR are protected and enforced under Municipal Law
• IPR are protected against piracy and infringement by
others
 Rights and Duties
• IP gives rise not only to property rights but duties also
• IP Owner has the exclusive right to produce the work,
make copies of the work, market the work etc
• He also has the negative right to exclude third parties
from exercising his statutory rights
• IPR Laws guarantees exclusive right to the owner to the
exclusion of all others
• The right resulting from the operation of IP law gives
the owner of that right a corresponding privilege to
exploit the work
 Co- Existence of Various Rights
• Different kinds of IPR can co-exist in relation
to a particular work.
• E.g., an invention can be patented and a
drawing of the invention can be copyrighted.
A design can be protected under the Designs
Act and the design can also be incorporated in
a Trademark
 Statutory Requirements
• IPRs are statutory rights governed in accordance with
the provisions of corresponding legislations
• The protection to the right holder is given to ideas,
technical solutions or other information that have been
expressed in a legally admissible form and that are, in
some cases, subject to registration procedures.
• Registration is Mandatory: patents and industrial
designs
• registration is optional: trademarks, copyrights and
geographical indications.
• Copyright: the moment the work is completed,
protection automatically springs into
 Territoriality
• Intellectual property laws are first and foremost territorial
in nature and apply only within the particular jurisdiction
• Creators and inventors of various kinds of IP need to secure
and enforce their IPR in respective jurisdictions as per the
respective national laws
• The registration procedures, protection, duration, and
enforcement of different IPR are primarily governed by the
municipal laws
• The various International Instruments on IP including, Paris
Convention, Bern Convention and TRIPS provide for the
national treatment by which the inventors and creators will
be given protection in foreign countries.
 Exhaustion of Rights
• Intellectual property rights are generally subject to the
principle of exhaustion
• Consten and Grunding v. Commission
• Exhaustion basically means that after the first sale by
the right holder or by his exhaustion authorization, his
right comes to an end and he is not entitled to stop
further movement of goods.
• Once an IP right holder has sold a physical product to
which its IPRs are attached, he cannot prohibit the
subsequent resale of that product
• The characteristic of non-exhaustion by consumption is
an important feature of intellectual property
 Dynamism
• As per the requirement of scientific and
technological progress, new items are getting
added to the ambit of IPRs by extending and
expanding the scope of its protection.
• E.g. Bio patents, software copyright, plant
variety protections
• The intellectual property system is dynamic
and characterized by its ability to evolve and
adapt to the demands of time
 International Character
• A number of international conventions, treaties and agreements
have been settled for the purpose of harmonizing and regularizing
the principle of reciprocity in the field of IP.
• E.g. Paris Convention, 1883 for the Protection of Industrial Property,
and Berne Convention, 1886 for the Protection of Literary and
Artistic Works
• Before International Convention it was difficult to obtain protection
in many countries due to diversity in national laws
• Agreement of Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights
(TRIPS) provides minimum standard of protection for IP on the basis
that adequate and effective protection must be given in such a way
that enforcement of IP in member countries does not create
barriers in legitimate trade.
 Subject matter of Intellectual
Property Protection
• Intellectual property rights are available only
to those items which are specifically identified
and recognized by the law as the subject
matter of protection.
• The law must recognize it as a subject matter
eligible for IPR
 Conclusion
• Intellectual Property refers to intellectual creativity of a creator. In
contrast to physical property, intellectual property is an intangible
asset of a person. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) are the exclusive
rights given to the creators to their creations. Common types of
Intellectual Property Rights are patents, copyrights, trademarks,
industrial deigns, geographical indications, trade secrets, layout
designs for integrated circuits and even ideas. Intellectual property
rights provide an incentive to the creator to develop his creation
and to share it with other people for the development of the
society. The basic aim of the IPRs is to help in meeting the
challenges in the development like reducing poverty, stimulating
economic growth, improving the health status by providing
medicines to the poor, improving access to education and
contributing the overall sustainable development. Though IPRs
provide incentive to the author or the creator and lead to a
competition in the field of invention bu