HOW & WHERE TO PROTECT YOUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY Presented by Yahaya Maikori

AGENDA  What is intellectual Property ?  Why should I care  Types of IP protection  Case study

WHAT IS IP?  “ IP is a group of legal rights that provides protection over things that people create or invent “.

WHY SHOULD YOU(OR I ) CARE  IP can attract investments  Deter others from stealing our ideas  Deter other from entering the market  defend as the patent portfolio  Defend against other patent portfolios  License or trade with other  Provide alternative source of income

TYPES OF IP & HOW TO PROTECT THEM (OTHERS)  Company registration  Domain name  Social Media Account - Twitter, linked etc ***UDRPs (Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy)

TRADE SECRETS Have economic value because it is not known to your competitors, it includes know how, database, contact list, trade secrets,recipes it is confidential in nature and the owner has made effort to protect it.  Formula for Coca-Cola (Coke™) Decided not to patent to keep secret FOREVER …  KFC’s secret recipe Only 3 executives have access to the recipe  Anti engineering clauses  They supplement both the copyright and patent laws and in case where ideas have not developed sufficiently to   Protects know how, database, contact list, trade secrets its built entirely on vase law and the info must be of a confidential nature and the owner has made eeforst ot protect it 

TRADE SECRETS CONT’D  Relatively low cost to gain protection  Some consider it practically free  Must take precautions to maintain secrecy  Protection lasts as long as the secret remains a secret  protects information/knowledge that can be kept “relatively secret”  Commercial Benefits  Can provide critical barriers to entry  Enforcement…  Enforcement complicated by variation in State law

TRADE SECRET CONT’D  Keep your mouth shut  Confidentiality agreement  Non compete  Non disclosure agreement Anti reverse engineering clauses

COPYRIGHT  Art, Writing, Music, Movies, software etc…Any “work” reduced to a tangible medium of expression  How ?  ensure your work is properly marked - Word’ or ‘symbol” i.e “All rights reserved "or “© - copyright notice - name of publisher - year of publisher

COPYRIGHT CONT’D  Register your work  Keep a register of supporting documents i.e drafts, sketches etc  have agreements between co authors - Termination - royalty sharing formula  join a copyright collecting society

COPYRIGHT CONT’D  Online Technology that helps protect the cpi.e encoded watermarks  send a bill  cease and desist/ take down notice  Notify infringers hosting services i.e domian tools or whose  hire an attorney

TRADEMARK  “Any word, name, symbol, or device or any combination thereof used by a person or which a person has a bona fide intention to use in commerce and is capable of distinguishing his enterprise from another ”

TRADEMARK CONT’D  Symbols  ® - used to indicate a Registered Trademark  ™ - used to brand a product  ℠ - used to brand a service Examples  Google®  Coke®  Color Brown (UPS)  HOW  Trademark office  Madrid system

PATENT Classes of Patents  Machine or apparatus for the performance of a task  Process  Manufacture( any fabrication and fabricated product )  Or the composition of matter (any chemical or compound mixture)

PATENT CONT’D  Selecting what to Patent?  Business Value:  What is the likely value of the technology?  Will exclusivity provide a competitive advantage?  Does the technology align with your commercial products?  Legal Strength:  What is the novelty over prior art?  Business Methods?  Exclusivity:  Will competitors have viable design-around options?  Can infringement be detected?

PATENT CONT’D  What is the standard for getting a patent?  New  Useful  Non-obvious  What do you get if you meet the standard?  Not a right to use the invention  Right to exclude others from the invention for a limited time  What do you give up by getting a patent?  You have to teach others how to make and use the invention  What do you risk by not patenting your invention?  i.e., trying to keep it a trade secret  Someone else can patent it and exclude you from using it.

PATENT CONT’D  Patent Strategy - Benefits from Patents  Monopoly Pricing  Increase profit margins through exclusionary power  Extra Income  Generate income through licensing activities  Access to Technology  Cross-license to access other technologies  Business Asset  Can be used to assist in securing funding or obtaining desired exit valuations  Marketing Tool  Patent Pending  Chilling effect on competition  Demonstrated expertise in a particular field

CASE STUDY - APPLE What sort of IP did Apple take into consideration in launching the iPad?

APPLE CASE STUDY CONT’D Control of Peripheral Devices Technology Data Processing Technology Computer Test Technology Over 7000 patents

APPLE CASE STUDY CONT’D  Trade Secrets?  By definition we cannot know the extent of the technology within the iPad protected by Trade Secrets  Likely Candidates:  Software  OS, Applications, etc…  Processor  A4 chip  A new Apple specific design

TRADE SECRETS / CONTRACT  Contracts… (i.e. Confidentiality Agreements)  Employment Agreements  Suppliers  Hardware fabrication  Product Literature  Etc…  Partners  AT&T  Verizon

APPLE CASE STUDY CONT’D  Copyright Protected Material…  Software  Product Literature  Web Site  Product Images  Icons  User Interface Design  Advertisements  Etc…

THANK YOU 