![]() However, once the secret is out, the protection is completely lost. This can be very cost-effective protection and, unlike a patent, can last indefinitely. One alternative is to maintain the innovation as a trade secret. To suggest that a patent infringement suit can be successfully avoided by selling parts as components of a kit in contradistinction to their sale assembled is, in my view, errant nonsense. ![]() Without assembly there can be no purpose in a purchaser buying the unassembled parts since, unassembled, they cannot be used for the purpose for which they are purchased, that is, to sail. Trilantic Corp. dealt with a manufacturer selling the unassembled components of a patented sailboard (1986). This situation is often resolved by agreement between the patentees to grant licences to each other. If this is the case, manufacturing or marketing the product with your improvement would probably be an infringement. You may obtain a patent for an improvement to an existing invention, but keep in mind that the original patent may still be in force. Once an invention is patented in Canada, exclusive rights are granted to the patent holder as defined in the Patent Act (Government of Canada, 1985). Any interference with the patent holder’s “full enjoyment of the monopoly granted by the patent” is considered a patent infringement (CanLII, 2004). You cannot patent a scientific principle, an abstract theorem, an idea, some methods of doing business, or a computer program per se. It must show inventive ingenuity and not be obvious to someone skilled in that area.Ī patent is granted only for the physical embodiment of an idea (for example, the description of a door lock) or for a process that produces something tangible or can be sold.It must show utility (be functional and operative).The invention must show novelty (be the first in the world).To earn a patent from the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, there are three basic criteria for patentability: In Canada, a patent is a right, granted by government, to exclude others from making, using, or selling your invention for twenty years after the patent application is filed. Obtaining a patent involves navigating a challenging process. Patents are legal decrees that protect inventions from direct imitation for a limited period of time ( Figure 4.9 “Patents”). ![]() Figure 4.8 Types of Intellectual Property Patents WestJet’s culture thus is not intellectual property, although some of its complements such as WestJet’s logo and unique colour schemes are. This can be contrasted with WestJet Airlines’ well-known culture, which rivals are free to attempt to copy if they wish. For example, KFC’s secret blend of eleven herbs and spices is famous for being a trade secret. Some forms of intellectual property are best protected by legal means, while defending others depends on surrounding them in secrecy. Even if a piece of intellectual property does not meet all four criteria as a strategic resource, it can be bundled with other resources and activities to create a strategic-level resource.Ī variety of formal and informal methods are available to protect a firm’s intellectual property from imitation by rivals. If a piece of intellectual property is valuable, rare, and nonsubstitutable, it can also constitute a strategic resource. The four main types of intellectual property are patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets ( Figure 4.8 “Types of Intellectual Property”). Intellectual property is the legal rights that result from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary, and artistic fields (Canadian Intellectual Property Office, 2014). As a result, developing intellectual property is important to many organizations. But resources that involve intellectual property reduce or even eliminate this risk. Companies are clever, and effective imitation is often very possible. The inability of competitors to imitate a strategic resource is a key to leveraging the resource to achieve long–term competitive advantages.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |