What You Need to Know About Intellectual Property

What is Intellectual

Property??

Intellectual Property Is ...

• Patents

• Copyrights

• Trademarks

• Trade secrets

Who is Involved in

Intellectual Property?

Involvement in Intellectual Property

• World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

WIPO has 146 countries from across the world.

• European Patent Organization (EPO)

The EPO is the organization that controls incoming

patents for nations in the European Union.

What Benefit Does

Intellectual Property

Provide?

Benefits of IP • IP allows inventors to profit from their inventions on

an exclusive level.

• Inventors can keep exclusive rights and produce their

product, or license out production to many different

production companies.

• Patents and other IP are considered investments

because of the benefits of legal protection.

How Does Intellectual

Property Work?

How IP Works • Protection for ideas through laws.

• If you want something protected outside of your home

country, you must go through EPO or WIPO.

• Filing falls on the individual or company who created

the intellectual property.

How Does Foreign

Intellectual Property

Work?

Filing IP in Foreign Countries • The first step to filing is hiring someone to do your

intellectual property translations.

• Select which countries you plan on applying to for IP.

• Select a filing pathway that will make the most sense:

WIPO or EPO.