Basic definitions of patent, copyright, trademark and more.
As intellectual property issues arise more and more
often in cyberspace, we all need to better understand the terminology involved.
Here are some basic definitions:
Intellectual property: any product of the human
mind which the law protects against unauthorized use by others.
Copyright: a form of protection provided to the
authors of "original works of authorship," including literary, dramatic,
musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works, both published and
unpublished. The 1976 Copyright Act generally gives the owner of copyright the
exclusive right to reproduce the copyrighted work, to prepare derivative works,
to distribute copies, to perform or display the copyrighted work
publicly.
Patent: the grant of a property right to the
inventor of an invention. What is granted is the right to exclude others from
making, using, offering for sale, selling or importing the invention -- not the
right to make, use, offer for sale, sell or import it. The term of a new patent
is generally 20 years.
There are three types of patents:
- Utility patents for anyone who invents or
discovers any new and useful process, machine or article of
manufacture
- Design patents for anyone who invents a new,
original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture
- Plant patents for anyone who invents or
discovers and asexually reproduces any distinct and new variety of plants.
Trademark: a word, name, symbol or device that is
used in trade with goods to indicate the source of the goods and to distinguish
them from the goods of others. A servicemark is the same as a trademark except
that it identifies and distinguishes the source of a service rather than a
product. Trademark rights may be used to prevent others from using a confusingly
similar mark, but not to prevent others from making the same goods or from
selling the same goods or services under a clearly different mark.
Watermark: a technology that imprints digital
content with digital data that lets the owner track who has viewed, printed,
copied or saved the image. Often, if a user attempts to save or copy the
content, the digital watermark prompts the individual to register or pay for the
right to use that image. Digital watermarking is often used by stock photography
dealers and can also be used to protect documents, passports, concert tickets,
etc.
Digital Rights Management (DRM): a system for
protecting the copyrights of digital content that is distributed online, whether
it is downloaded, printed, passed from peer-to-peer, or viewed.
Please note that intellectual property law is
constantly changing. Be sure to consult an attorney whenever intellectual
property issues arise.
More info:http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/doc/general/index.html
Document Management 
