Today's business world can certainly be termed 'knowledge driven'. It is also cut-throat. So how do you protect your business? Well, Intellectual Property (or IP as it often known) should be a key consideration and so should getting the right intellectual property services from specialist IP solicitors. Yet, you will not be alone if it is an aspect of your business that you have overlooked or even misunderstood. Competitors will rarely act by an unwritten 'gentleman's agreement' so it is not sensible to trust in their good faith and simply do nothing.
It may even come to a case of theft if you allow yourself to be open to such risk. Just think about what would happen if all your hard work was lost? What about the financial loss? By law, your product would fall into ownership of someone else. An experienced IP lawyer can help you with your rights.
So, what sort of things might you need to think about in the area of Intellectual Property Services? To name a few of the main categories, there are trademarks, copyrights, patents, trade secrets and confidential information. A trademark may not be able to stop someone making money on the back of your originality, however it can stop someone using your brand. Once registered, you can treat your trademark as any other property. This means mortgaging, selling or licensing it to someone else as you please.
A copyright is another equally important, area. This can be awarded over written material, photos, music and software all types of IP. If you get sensible advice regarding your IP then you can protect yourself and stop others using your products without your permission. Inventions and innovations can also be protected, but via patenting instead. The major benefit of this is that once it is registered you gain a monopoly right over your product or process for up to 20 years (subject to renewal). It could be the case that you have a written contract of employment that dictates to your employees what they are and are not able to disclose. Is this information sensitive? How would you feel if it fell into the public domain? How do you control and protect the flow of information?
There is only one answer: get the right intellectual property advice from specialist solicitors who can draw up a watertight and binding legal agreement. Protect your IP and stop others from stealing your ideas. Act now and be aware of how important intellectual property services are.