Small Business Encyclopedia

Category: Inventing

Copyright

Exclusive legal rights that protect works of authorship, composition or artistry. A copyright protects the publication, production or sale of the rights to a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work or computer program or to the use of a commercial print or label.

Intellectual Property

The ownership of ideas. Unlike tangible assets to your business such as computers or your office, intellectual property is a collection of ideas and concepts.

Invention

An object, process or technique that displays an element of novelty. In certain circumstances, legal protection may be granted to an invention by way of a patent.

Patents

A form of protection that provides a person or legal entity with exclusive rights for making, using or selling a concept or invention and excludes others from doing the same for the duration of the patent

Licensing

A business arrangement in which one company gives another company permission to manufacture its product for a specified payment

Prototype

A replica of a product as it will be manufactured, which may include such details as color, graphics, packaging and instructions

Trade Secrets

Information used by a business, which can be legally protected that is secret to the general public and is critical to the livelihood and success of a business

Trademark

Any symbol, word or combination thereof used to represent or identify a product. A service mark means the same thing, but identifies a service.

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