Trademark & Copyrights
Trademark & Copyrights
Do you make all of your company’s assets and materials from scratch? If so, you’ve probably thought about how to safeguard your creations. In that case, you might be asking what sets copyright apart from trademark protection.
Ultimately, your company’s intellectual property and brand recognition may be just as crucial as its financial success. Consider the potential consequences of someone selling a product under your company’s name and brand without your knowledge or consent.
Fortunately, you can safeguard your company and take legal action against anyone who misappropriated your brand and intellectual property, thanks to copyrights and trademarks. We’ll describe the distinction between copyrights and trademarks in this article.
What is a Trademark?
A trademark is a one-of-a-kind logo or set of words that is used to symbolize a company or the goods that it sells. Once a trademark is registered, that specific sign or sequence of words cannot be utilized by any other entity again, so long as the required paperwork and costs are paid and the trademark continues to be used.
Trademark protections are perpetual, but patents often last for about 20 years. However, to protect themselves from imitators, businesses need to register for patents and trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
Brand names and trademarks grow inseparable in the minds of consumers over time, to the point that brand recognition can be attained without ever having to read the company’s name.
What are Copyrights?
The term “copyright” describes the owner’s legal claim to their creation. For many who prefer a more simplistic definition, copyright is simply the legal permission to make copies. As a result, the only people who can legally make copies of a work are the ones who made it in the first place or those to who the original creators have granted permission.
Original works are protected by copyright laws that allow their authors to profit from their work for a limited time before it is released into the public domain.
What is the Difference Between Trademarks and Copyrights?
Trademarks and copyrights are types of intellectual property that can be described as intangible assets or, to put it another way, creative works of the mind. Examples of intellectual property include inventions, designs, literary and artistic works, images, names, and symbols used in commercial settings.
When it comes to firms’ intellectual property, this term can broadly refer to any business concepts, in addition to any works or procedures derived from such ideas. Having stated this, the legal protection of intellectual property in the United States is accomplished through patents, trademarks, and copyrights.
Copyright and trademarks both offer protection for intellectual property; however, the assets that are guarded by each are distinct, and the prerequisites for registering each are distinct as well. This is the primary distinction between the two types of protection.
In general, copyright serves to protect works of literature and the arts, including works such as books and movies, and it is automatically formed whenever a work is created. A trademark, on the other hand, is used to safeguard elements that contribute to the definition of a firm’s brand, such as a company logo or slogan; however, registering a trademark with the government necessitates more rigorous paperwork in order to acquire the most complete legal protections.
