Whenever our consultants mention the importance of intellectual property (IP), most clients response: it is only for big corporation.
Indeed we have a lot of tool in commerce to avoid potential risk, such as commercial insurance and intellectual property etc. Think about it, an employee demands million dollars as compensation to industrial accident and you have no insurance. Similarly, one day you build a big corporation and the brand is worth of millions, infringement may cost you millions.
Type of Intellectual Property
In general, Intellectual Property can be categorized as: trademark, patent, design and copyright in Hong Kong (as well as most jurisdictions).1 Copyright comes with original creation, whilst the registration can define the ownership, scope and effective period. This can minimize potential dispute, which may lead to legal procedure in the future.
Trademark is a sign with words, shapes etc to represent a product or service. Many people confuse with business registration, company registration and trademark. In most regions, trademark and business registration are totally different. So consultants always advise to register your trademark in the foreign market to protect the company brand.
Patent is the exclusive right of a new innovation. For instance, the formula of vaccination, mechanical design etc. The innovation is public after patent registration, but nobody can manufacture, use or sell the patented product or service without the consent of the patent owner.
Design means the outlook of a product. Thought it is easy to understand, we should not ignore its importance. Outlook is often a key selling point and design protection is a must.
Copyright means every creation such as articles, photos, drawing, videos etc. The author has the copyright automatically after the creation. The copyright owner can demand civil remedies such as deletion or compensation if anyone infringes. In the past, our articles were infringed and we would demand deletion immediately.
IP consultant
There is consultation service for IP application, as most business behaviors. The role of an IP consultant is to confirm feasibility of the application and protect the interest of the client effectively. Once before, our client aided with the BUD Fund decided to register the trademark by itself. While it seemed an easy task, the IP consultant referred by BizMagnet studied the case and found out that the trademark already registered. We need a new plan therefore.
Business consultants help with expertise and reduce the risk of wrong business decision. It saves money and time, and let you focus on the core business.
If you need government funding to brand, welcome to reach BizMagnet consultant.
- What is Intellectual Property, Intellectual Property Department, https://www.ipd.gov.hk/eng/intellectual_property.htm
