Intellectual Property Rights – What You Need To Know as an Illinois New Start-Up
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The matter of intellectual property for a new start-up is very important, especially if you want to ensure your company’s legacy and longevity. In the first few years of developing a business, it is crucial to establish and secure protection for your intellectual property.
Protecting a company’s intellectual property rights may seem complex and overwhelming. That’s why it’s important to seek the help of an intellectual property attorney in Chicago. With their legal knowledge and expertise, companies protect their future.
What is Intellectual Property?
Every industry has its forms of intellectual property. For a new start-up, the ones that matter most are patents, trademarks, and copyrights.
Patents
Patents may include utility patents for machines, articles of manufacture, processes, and others. More specifically, patents may cover technical inventions such as radios, computer chips, remote technology, communications devices, etcetera. Patents may also cover non-functional designs, such as ornaments and interface designs, as used in mobile phones, among others.
Trademarks
Trademarks are important for business branding, which drives the company’s popularity and reach throughout the market. Logos, symbols, slogans, packaging design, jingles, tag lines, and other attributes associated with the company’s brand can be trademarked for their exclusive use and gain.
By protecting a brand’s trademark, you are guarding your brand identity so it cannot be copied or duplicated by another. It can also help your company claim damages, especially when the infringement on your trademark has caused confusion among your consumers and resulted in the loss of profit or business for you.
Copyrights
Copyrights protect one’s authorship over the work, such as artwork, music, photographs, literature, architecture, and even computer software. It also yields certain rights and benefits to the owner, such as control over the reproduction of the work, extracting derivative content and materials, distribution of said materials, and others.
How to Obtain Intellectual Property Rights
There are different ways to obtain intellectual property rights, depending on what kind you need. The interested party must file a patent application with the US Patent and Trademark Office.
The application must include a detailed product description, including drafts, drawings, and patent claims. The company can then claim a “Patent Pending” status, which already acts as initial protection against potential competitors.
Meanwhile, trademark applications require specifying marks, such as text, design, or both. Any custom stylization must also be included, such as color or sound. It is also important for the company to list the trademark application for as many products or services as possible.
When does copyright protection begin? Technically speaking, the moment a work is written or recorded or made “tangible,” it is already considered copyrighted. However, you must register the copyright to make it official and indisputable. It makes infringement and unauthorized use easier to prove.
Importance of an Intellectual Property Rights Lawyer
An intellectual property rights lawyer can help you, and your business get protection for your work. Big or small, your Illinois startup has the right to secure your intellectual property for the use and benefit of your company.
Especially when the intellectual property in question pertains to fast-evolving technology or other forms of work or material that are high in demand, time is of the essence. Filing your intellectual property rights protection as soon as possible helps secure your footing in the competitive market.
Legal Help from Anthony J. Madonia & Associates
Don’t let other businesses and competitors beat you to the punch. Protect your new start-up and act today. Get the business protection you need, starting with your intellectual property.
Get your intellectual property rights protected immediately. Seek legal help from Anthony J. Madonia & Associates Ltd. to secure your patents, trademarks, and copyrights.