What is intellectual property law?

Intellectual property is that area of law which concerns legal rights associated with creative effort or commercial reputation and goodwill. The subject matter or intellectual property is very wide and includes literally and artistic works, films, computer programs, inventions, design and marks used by traders for their goods or services. The law deters others from copying or taking unfair advantage of the work or reputation of another and provides remedies should this happen. There are several different forms of rights or areas of law giving rise to rights that together make up intellectual property including Copyright, Patents and Trademarks.

Copyright law is one of the intellectual property law which includes protecting the photography, sound recordings, films and broadcasting, computer programs, databases, preparatory material and associated documentation(in printed or electronic form) from being unauthorized copying, uses or distribution. As with any other literary work, the copyright in a computer program is infringed by making, without the copyright owner's license, a copy of the program or of a substantial part of it. Substantiality is an issue of quality and therefore the copyright subsisting in a computer program can be infringed if the 'essence' of the program is copied, even if the part copied is relatively small quantitatively. 

Any human being who invents, their inventions are protected by the law called patents law. The inventor his invention cannot exclude rivals from manufacturing or using it. But he could expect an income commensurate with the extent of the use of his invention by others. Where revenue derived from this use very substantially exceeds his R and D costs, it may well provide him with a substantial benefit. 

Along with patents and copyright, trademarks constitute a key component of system of intellectual property rights. Trademark is any sign capable of being represented graphically which is capable of distinguishing goods or services of one undertaking from those of other undertakings. It may in particular, consist of words, designs, letters, numbers or sale of goods or their packaging. Details of trademarks are recorded in the register of trademarks, a document which is open. Microsoft and Google both are the examples of registered trademarks.

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