When it comes to business, having ownership of certain assets is essential for success. Proprietary rights are the legal rights that protect owners of intellectual property from having their products, ideas, or services copied or used without their permission. These rights give exclusive control over the use of the property and its value.
What Types of Proprietary Rights Are There?
There are four types of proprietary rights that business owners use to protect their assets from being used without their permission. These include: copyright, trademark, patent, and trade secret.
Copyright
A copyright gives an owner exclusive rights to reproduce, distribute, perform, and display a work of art or literature. For example, when a musician releases an album, they are legally entitled to make sure that no one can copy and distribute their work without permission.
Trademark
A trademark gives an owner exclusive rights to a unique symbol, phrase, or design that is associated with a product or service. For example, Nike has a recognizable swoosh that is trademarked and cannot be used by anyone else without permission.
Patent
A patent is a type of proprietary right that gives an owner exclusive legal rights over an invention. For example, Thomas Edison was granted a patent for his invention of a light bulb. This meant that no one else could use or reproduce his invention without permission, giving him exclusive legal rights.
Trade Secret
A trade secret is a type of proprietary right that gives an owner exclusive rights to a piece of information (like a recipe or a process) that is kept confidential. For example, Coca-Cola is famously guarded about its recipe. The company treats the recipe as a trade secret, which means it must take steps to make sure the information is kept confidential.
Conclusion
Proprietary rights are a set of legal rights that give owners of intellectual property exclusive rights over their products, ideas, or services. These rights help to protect the owners’ assets from being used by others without permission. From copyrights, trademarks, patents to trade secrets, these types of proprietary rights are essential for business owners in order to maintain control of their assets.