Intellectual Property - What is it?

Intellectual property is any intangible covered by laws governing its ownership and transfer. Patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets are all types of intellectual property. Businesses are still defining the metes and bounds of intellectual property however, creating new types, like domain names and common short codes, every day.

Why is intellectual property so important? Unlike with tangible property, such as a vehicle or a building, you can allow others to use your intellectual property, without necessarily diminishing your ability to use it at the same time. The Internet makes intellectual property even more valuable, bringing creators and consumers of intellectual property together and reducing licensing and transfer costs.

For many companies, intellectual property is their most valuable asset, sometimes adding billions of dollars to a company's books. Strangely however, many companies do not even know what intellectual property they own, how to protect it or how to avoid infringing the intellectual property of others. While that head in the sand approach may have served them well in the desolate, pre-Internet business landscape, as the Internet pushes companies closer together, ignorance of intellectual property is a recipe for disaster.

If you are unsure what intellectual property your company has, conduct an intellectual property audit. While you can do the audit yourself, an intellectual property attorney might help you find intellectual property you did not even know you had.  In the Internet age, with billions of eyes watching, your company has to know what intellectual property it has, how to protect it and whether your company is infringing the intellectual property of others. If you do not, some other company will, taking your unprotected intellectual property or suing you for unauthorized use of their, properly protected, intellectual property.

Even if the audit reveals no immediate action is required, at least you can rest easier at night knowing your intellectual property ducks are all in a row.