If you pass for an average social media user and you are conversant with trends and evolving copyright laws, then intellectual property, at least the theft of it, is a familiar world. 

Jeniffer Tutty, has an interesting post about 9 common mistakes people make about copyright. She penned something interesting, a misconception that gets us on the wrong side of intellectual property and copyright laws. See the image attached.

What is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property (IP) is an intangible and created asset with legal protection from unauthorized use, distribution or sale. IP covers intangible assets with legal protection, products, artistic and literary work, etc.

There are four types of intellectual property protection for the various and common forms of IP. We have patents, trademarks, copyrighted material, and trade secrets. 

A patent is a legal protection available for inventions. A trademark is a symbol, word, or phrase distinguishing your product or brand. Copyrighted material protects creative work written down or expressed as a poem, photo, painting, etc. Trade secrets are confidential business information protected by law to ensure appropriate consequences when to parties that disclose them unlawfully.

What is an Intellectual Property Strategy?

This is a business’s strategic plan to grow its intellectual property portfolio and protect the business from its competitors. 

It is easy to lose track of what intellectual property needs legal protection, but with an IP strategy, legal experts can intricately determine what assets need protection as your business and its product line grows.

“What you don’t measure, you can’t improve”. Similarly, an IP strategy determines what assets in your business currently and futuristically need protection. As the business grows and policies change, IP consultants and lawyers are able to advise your business on what to protect and what amendments to make.

The case of Kellogg Co. Vs National Biscuit Co

Henry Perky made pillow-shaped cereal he called shredded whole meat in 1893. Critics at the World Fair in Chicago called the product ‘shredded doormat’ while John Kellog described the cereal as “eating a whisk broom.” 

Surprisingly, the public received the product well, and sales skyrocketed. Years later, after Perky’s death, Kellog produced and began selling a similar cereal they had criticized. National Business Co. (the successor of Henry Perky’s company) filed a lawsuit against Kellogg’s Co., arguing that “the new shredded wheat was a trademark violation and unfair competition.”

Guess what? They lost the case. First, Perky’s patent on the brand and machinery that made them expired in 1912, after he died in 1908. The court ruling stated that the term “shredded meat” was not trademarkable, and its pillow shape was functional and therefore able to be copied after the patent had expired.

With a proper intellectual property strategy in place, it could have been avoided. As long as the patent had expired, the possible turn out of the case was limited.

This is your cue to get an IP strategy in place. We invite you to check out our IP Information Session here. 

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Written by BIPOC Foundation

This blog is an Initiative of BIPOC Foundation and is aimed at helping BIPOC (black, indigenous and people of colour) founders get all the support they need to scale their business in Canada. BIPOC Foundation has resourceful programs like the BIPOC Founders Hub Accelerator Program, LIFT, The Table, Mentorship, and the Learning Series Program. You can find more details about the programs here.

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