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Intellectual Property for the Small Business

OwnerMy Background – Sierra Nevada College

Origins of IP Protection - U.S. Constitution - Powers of Congress, Article 1, Section 8 – “To Promote the progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries…”

1/3 Book Value of Fortune 500 companies is IP

Categories of Intellectual Property

ProtectionPatent

Trademark

Copyright

Trade Secret

Patent

Procurement – U.S. Governmental Grant

Patentable Matter Utility Patent – processes, machines,

manufacture, composition of matter Design Patent – ornamental designs Plant Patent

Term – 20 years from filing

Requirements – Usefulness, Novelty, Non-Obvious

Trademark

Procurement – Usage

Trademark Coverage – names, designs, logos, slogans, sounds, colors, fragrances, trade dress

Term – Provided usage, perpetuity

Requirements – not generic, descriptive, or confusingly similar to existing marks

Federal and State Protection

Copyright

Procurement – Original Fixation

Copyrightable Matter – books, scripts, articles, reports, computer programs, databases, websites, musical works, pictures, sculptures, motion pictures, sound recordings, architecture

Term – Life of author plus 70 years, Company owned – shorter of 95 years from first publication or 120 years from creation

Requirements – Work of authorship, Originality

Trade Secret

Procurement – Reasonable measures to maintain secrecy

Protectable Matter – Recipe, formula, method of conducting business, customer list, price list, marketing plans, etc.

Term – Potentially perpetual

Requirements – Value, not publicly known, secrecy

State-Based Statutes

IP Miscellany

Overlapping Coverage

Self-Enforcement

International Protection

Small Business Owner Recommendations

Filing

Policing

IP Valuation – Intangible Assets

IP Notices - ℠, ™, ®, Patent Pending, Patent #, ©

Websites/Domain Names

IP Lawyers

Intellectual Property Websites

Trademark and Patent – www.uspto.gov

Copyright – www.copyright.gov

State Protection – Respective Secretary of State websites

Questions?