There are many ways to use intellectual property such as trademarks, patents and copyrights.
Trademarks are often used to differentiate one company from the next. So customers know exactly who they’re dealing with, and business owners don’t have to worry about competitors using confusingly similar names as well as logos to their own. There is no requirement to register a trademark, but a ten-year term can be granted.
Using a patent, an inventor can prevent others from making, selling, or using their invention for the a specific period of time.
Plant, design, and utility patents are really the three main categories of patents. For the most part, they last for twenty years.
Authors are granted copyright automatically when they create an original task of writers such as a novel, song, film or piece of software. Among these privileges is the right to reproduce and distribute the work, as well as to create and sell derivative works. The US Copyright Office does not require works to be registered, but it can be advantageous to do so. All but the most exceptional cases of copyright infringement are limited to a maximum of seventy years.
