Ensuring that the creative thinkers in this economy are financially rewarded and their ideas are protected from pirating is an important step in ensuring that new ideas will continue to flow and stimulate our economy. For this reason, laws have been devised that protect what is called intellectual property. Intellectual property is any form of creativity. It includes inventions, discoveries, original data, unique materials, artistic works, or anything creative considered to have value.

Intellectual property protection falls into four areas:
● Copyrights
● Patents
● Trademarks
● Trade secrets

A copyright gives its author exclusive rights to reproduce certain types of work for a specified period of time. Copyrights protect literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works. Computer software is also covered by copyright laws. Copyright protection does have its limitations. Copyrights prohibit the reproduction of materials but not the ideas communicated. Also, in some cases, limited excerpts from copyrighted materials can be reproduced with appropriate acknowledgment without securing the permission of the author or copyright holder.

Patents are an exclusive right to produce, use, and sell an invention or process. The process for patenting a product can be very involved and time consuming and will generally require the assistance of a lawyer or other professional. Patentable innovations must first prove a degree of technical sophistication and uniqueness. It is surprising how often the same truly unique invention has been conceived by different individuals. That is why a patent search is an important and tedious part of the process. It is the inventor’s responsibility to prove that no one else "owns" that innovation. In some cases, a concept for an invention or process is already so widely disseminated that it is considered public domain and consequently is no one’s to own.

Trademarks are symbols, logos, designs, words, or letters used by a manufacturer or other business to distinguish its product or service from that of its competitors. In short, a trademark is a brand name. Even audio clips can be trademarked. A small trademark symbol, an "R" inside a circle (®), can be found on most commercially marketed products.

Trade secrets are defined as any design, process, composition, device, technique, or any unique thing that only you, or a limited group of people, are aware of and that is commercially valuable. Trade secrets tend to be limited to manufacturing processes, production machines, chemical formulas, or recipes. Trade secrets are only protected by statute when the information has been gained through dishonest means such as industrial espionage or breach of confidence. Trade secrets are not protected, however, when they are discovered through examination of goods purchased in the marketplace. An example would be recreating Kentucky Fried Chicken's "secret recipe" by purchasing the chicken and experimenting with herbs until you arrive at a combination that produces a similar-tasting product.

An entrepreneur needs to be aware of the statutes concerning intellectual property not only to protect his or her own creative interests but also to avoid infringing on another person's intellectual properties. With all the new products on the market, there really are very few new ideas. Taking the necessary precautions to ensure that the ideas being used in the business are not legally owned by someone else will save valuable time, money, and legal entanglements in the future.

For more information on intellectual property, copyrights, patents and trademarks, go to: United States Patent and Trademark Office