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MiMfg Magazine
September 2019
Got IP? Protect It!
By Dean Amburn • Giroux Amburn, P.C.
Identifying and protecting your company’s
intellectual property (IP) is likely the most vital step
your business will take to securing its future success.
Consider the following:
• IP-intensive industries account for 38% of our
nation’s GDP and support over 27.9 million jobs
• Theft of IP costs the U.S. economy nearly a quarter
trillion dollars annually — $180 billion from loss
of trade secrets, $29 billion from displaced
legitimate sales due to counterfeit and pirated
goods, and $18 billion from pirated software
Here’s the bottom line: IP is critical to the success of
any business and central to supporting the U.S. economy.
The four core IP areas every manufacturer should
know are patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade
secrets. Each can prove to be an invaluable asset for
a manufacturer and an essential part of developing
and protecting new products. IP is a keystone to
remaining competitive at home and overseas.
Let’s look at each of the four core areas of IP:
1. Patents protect an invention offering a novel
and non-obvious solution to a technical
problem. A patent grants its owner a 20-year
right (15 for a design patent) to prevent others
from making, using, selling, or importing what
is protected by the patent. A patent is owned by
the inventors unless assigned to someone else such as
the inventors’ employer.
2. Trademarks are source identifiers – they
associate goods and services with your business
as a source. Trademarks allow a business to
capitalize on its brand’s goodwill and prevent
others from using confusingly similar brands.
A company can keep a trademark alive for as long as
it is selling the goods or services associated with the
trademark. Unlike a patent, it is not a requirement
to register a trademark, but it can be advantageous.
3. Copyright protects the expression of an idea in
an original work, but not the idea itself. The
author owns the copyright unless it is a “work
made for hire.” It is not necessary to register a
copyright, but it is required to obtain registration in
order to file a lawsuit seeking damages as a result of
infringement. A copyright lasts for the life of the
author plus 70 years, or if it is a work made for
hire, it will last for 95 years from publication or
120 years from creation, whichever is shorter.
4. Trade secrets protect confidential business
information that has value and gives a competi-
tive advantage by virtue of its secrecy. Examples
include customer lists, pricing sheets, business
plans, and technical information (processes,
formulations, technical drawings showing
dimensions and tolerances). Trade secrets are
protected by both state and federal law. A trade
secret can last forever as long as it remains a secret.
What should a manufacturer do to ensure
proper protection of their intellectual property?
• Get educated about IP fundamentals including
basic IP law
• Continually evaluate and identify IP
(IP training classes are a great idea)
• Develop clear processes to protect your company’s IP
• Put procedures in place to avoid IP theft
or infringement
• Understand the role of IP agreements
(e.g. confidentiality, assignment, licensing)
• Act sooner than later — IP rights are frequently
lost due to delays
• And finally, when in doubt, consult expert
legal counsel to understand the legal principles
surrounding the protection of IP and avoidance
of IP infringement
Source: U.S. Commerce Department
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Dean Amburn is a patent attorney with Giroux
Amburn, P.C. He may be reached at 248-621-2111
or [email protected].