Identification of Intellectual Property Assets

This chapter summarizes the four intellectual property types: patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets. It discusses the identification of intellectual property, each of the four intellectual property types, and what characteristics or elements are necessary for an intangible asset to qualify as an intellectual property. An intellectual property is an intangible asset that enjoys special legal recognition and protection. A patent represents a property interest for the patent holder. Intellectual property can be an important part of the intangible assets of a typical industrial or commercial business. A utility patent is issued with regard to an invention that has some type of usefulness or utility. To have assurance of the intellectual property legal protection, the author will typically register the copyright. A trade secret can be any commercial information that has value due to the fact that it is kept confidential and is not known to the public.