How to safeguard your intellectual property
Intellectual property (IP) has become one of today’s most important business issues. People work hard to nurture their businesses and establish their names or reputations - but fail to protect (through patents, trademarks, copyright and other devices) the ideas, inventions, processes, and logos they create. The result is that such valuable assets can fall into the hands of rivals, and the creators can lose their competitive advantages. It is essential, therefore, that businesses identify their intellectual property, protect it, and develop initiatives to manage it. Consider these preliminary steps in that process...
1. Be clear about the concept.
In Australia, the federal agency administering intellectual property is IP Australia, which defines intellectual property as ‘the property of your mind or intellect’, and embraces proprietary knowledge. Securing legal protection today is essential. If you don’t protect it, you could lose it.
2. Keep your smart idea confidential - until it’s protected.
Be tight-lipped about your new ideas and do everything to ensure others don’t take and use your intellectual property. If talking to others about your new idea or invention, use a confidentiality agreement, prepared preferably by your legal advisor. Once signed by the other party, the agreement prevents them from disclosing to others, or using, your ideas without your permission.
3. Check that your idea is unique by conducting your own research.
To obtain patent protection, any idea must be both novel and inventive. So, early in the process, you need to ascertain if your idea or invention is new or if it has already been claimed by others. A key-word search at www.google.com or www.yahoo.com might determine if someone else has already published, manufactured, or patented your idea. If, for example, you believe you have a new handgrip for a golf club, a search using key words like ‘golf’, ‘golf clubs’, ‘grips’, ‘handgrip’, ‘sporting equipment’, etc., could provide initial answers. If the idea still appears novel, you can try an Internet patent search using similar key words and visiting such sites as www.uspto.gov or www.eps@cenet or www.patents.ibm.com
