Why Businesses Need to Hire IP Consultants

By Deepshikha Singh

In today's world, for any organization, its intellectual property is the biggest asset. A lot of time and money can be saved, and frustration and litigation can be avoided if a company's policy dictates its ownership and the use of its intellectual property. Intellectual Property as an asset can be categorized under categories like copyright, trademarks, patents and trade secrets. Hence, each distinctive type is important in its own way. Today, any industry or business, whether it is traditional or it is modern, regardless of how and what kind of product or service it produces or provides, it is  likely  to  regularly use intellectual property to prevent others from intruding on its due reward or benefiting  of  its goodwill  in  the  market  place.

Intellectual property have been broadly classified into following 4 categories:

  • Trademarks – Trademarks include Trade Names, Services, Products and Logos
  • Copyrights - All types of creative work are included under Copyrights, this includes- Art, Literary Work and Music
  • Patent – This includes Registration of Patents in case of innovation/invention, Process
  • Trade secret – Trade Secret involves processes and codes to be protected

To gain a competitive edge in creating unique ideas, logos, trademarks and in overall Intellectual Property management and to protect them from breaching, organizations need the assistance of specialized IP consultants

An organization that owns IP knows and understands the value of its various services like provision of goods and services to the customers either utilizing it internally or sharing it externally. IP being the central element establishing value and potential growth, the protection of IP of an organization has become one of the key elements towards its success. It is essential that businesses owners hire professional help that can assist them with identifying, protecting, and managing its intellectual property assets. Irrespective of the size of the business, it is essential that the leaders of the institutes have a proactive approach towards intellectual property in the early stages of the business.

Just like leasing out an apartment, licensing your intellectual property lets decide how long the license runs for, how it can be ended, who can use the IP, where they can use it, what they can use it for, and whether they can be forced to share it with other people. A good IP Strategy focuses on those intangibles that form the quasi-totality of a company’s assets, yet are often neglected by management because they are not as visible as tangible assets and don’t need to be reported in financial reports. With a well-articulated strategy, it can become part and parcel of the overall business plan and a good strategy plays a very significant role in allowing a company to achieve and maintain a long term competitive edge while maintaining profitablr return value for its owners and investors.

Current Issue