The legal and business literature, such as books, magazines, blogs, and reports, is replete with detailed writings on intellectual property, intellectual property rights, and the laws related to them, by experts in the field. Trying to write about this vast subject, in its finest nuances, in this forum, intended for entrepreneurs and budding entrepreneurs, would be unthinkable.

So mainly, I can, but only provide, a view of that world, which might be relevant to them. On a practical level, it can be covered in two sections, the first dealing with what constitutes IP and the next dealing with how IP can be protected.

Intellectual property is property that can be sold, licensed, damaged, or transferred. It would be worthwhile, at this juncture, to take a quick look at what types of IP cover and the approximate costs of IP in India.

Patents are exclusive rights granted to inventors by the government, which prohibits others from using their inventions in different ways, for a certain period of time (usually 20 years). Patent fees, excluding attorneys’ fees, are mandatory in the amount of Rs. 3500 or more, while its concession takes an average of 5 years. Patents must be renewed annually or full fees can be paid according to the schedule provided.

Copyright is the protection provided to the authors of original works of authorship in which the form of expression of a content is protected, rather than the content itself. These include works of literature, music, art, such as photos, drawings, songs, melodies, performing arts, books, etc. The copyright grant is immediate and lasts for the life of the creator plus another 70 years, and costs Rs. 500 and up for different categories.

The Geographical Indications (GI) of the products are those that belong to a particular country or a place located in it and are a guarantee of that distinctive quality that comes from that place of origin of the products. E.g. Saris from Kanchipuram. Fees are paid in accordance with the prescribed fee structure.

Apart from the previous category of products / services, it is important that startups know and understand the meaning of the intangible assets of their company, since 80% of the value of the business lies in these.

Most people are completely unaware of the presence and value of these assets, which comprise the know-how, experience, knowledge that highly qualified employees have, work and life experience, de novo ideas created specifically for the business by a group of experts to give the company an advantage over its competitors, goodwill and reputation, technical drawings, recipes, software programs developed by employees, formulas, written trade secrets and contracts.

These assets are not eligible to apply for patents and copyrights, and they have no value outside the company, but they greatly increase the value of the company.

Having become familiar with the various facets of intellectual property, we move on to the next section on how you can best protect it.