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understand what Intellectual Property Rights are, and how you can protect yourself against this
kind of theft and stealing.

Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)
Intellectual property refers to the rights given to people over creations of the mind. It is aimed at

stimulating the creativity of the human mind for the benefit of all by ensuring that the advantages
obtained from exploiting a creation benefits the creator. Inventions, logos, designs, literary work,
music, images, and names used in commerce all fall under intellectual property. The Intellectual
Property Rights are granted to the creators or owners over the creations of their minds for a
limited period of time. The goal of Intellectual Property Rights is to protect the intellectual
creation from unauthorised copying and piracy. Moreover, it encourages genuine ideas, creativity,

and innovation.
Types of Intellectual Property Rights The most common types of Intellectual Property Rights are
as follows:

• Copyright: A copyright is a legal term that protects the rights of literary, dramatic, musical,
artistic, and original works.

Some protected works are as follows:
• Plays • Songs • Software • Novels
• Advertisements • Architectural designs • Movies • Photographs

The copyright laws provide exclusive rights to the creator/owner, for reproduction,
translation, distribution, and adaptation of his/her work. The owner/creator of the work can
sell these rights by transferring the copyright ownership. The time period of copyright
protection lasts for the lifetime of an author with additional 70 years.

• Trademark: A trademark is a sign, phrase, word, symbol, or design that is capable of
identifying and distinguishing goods and services of one manufacturer or seller from that of
others. Trademark rights provide protection to logos, brand names, and slogans. A trademark
does not expire after a set term of years, if it is being used in commerce.
• Patent: A patent is an exclusive legal right related to an invention. In exchange for this right,
the inventor makes technical information related to the invention publicly available. Things

that can be patented include machines, chemical compositions, manufactured articles, and so
on. The patent right grants the owner/inventor the right to decide how the invention can be
used by others. The time period of patent protection in India is 20 years from the date on
which the application for the patent was filed. The patent term can be extended or adjusted
under certain circumstances.

• Industrial design right: An industrial design right constitutes the ornamental or aesthetic
aspect of an article. It is a right to identify and distinguish industrial objects on the basis of
their shape, surface, pattern, colour, or lines. The goal of industrial design right is to prevent
anyone from making, selling, or importing articles that bear a design which is a copy of the
protected design.
• Trade secret: A trade secret is a piece of confidential information regarding the commercial

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