Difference Between Trademark and Copyright
Difference Between Copyright and Trademark
Intellectual property protection falls into one of 3 categories:
- Patent
- Copyright
- Trademark
Each of these three protect a different type of intellectual property and has different usage rules. In some instances, you may need to apply for more than one of these protections for your project. In this article, we will discuss patents, copyrights, and trademarks and explain the differences between the 3.
By: Brad Nakase, Attorney
What is a trademark?
A trademark protects a design, phrase, or word connected with a brand or company. The purpose of a trademark is to protect a company’s marketing material or competitive advantage.
Example 1: “Just Do It” is a trademark which is owned Nike.
Example 2: The brand name Coca-Cola is a trademark owned by the Coka Cola Company.
Why Get a Trademark?
A trademark stops other companies from using your logo or marketing materials and confusing your customers. It will only prevent companies in similar industries or offering similar services or products from using the trademarked material.
What is a patent?
A patent protects technical inventions. You can protect new technology, prototypes, drugs, machinery, etc. with a patent.
Example 1: If Tesla creates a new train engine, they will patent it to stop competitors from creating a similar product.
Example 2: If Apple creates a new gadget, they will patent it to stop other companies from creating a similar product.
Why Get a Patent?
It stops other competitors from using your new technology without your permission. A patent protects the inventor’s competitive advantage. They can sell the patent or permission to use the patent. A lot of money is made from selling exclusive rights to a patent.
What is a copyright
A copyright protects creative works or intellectually creative works. It protects:
-
- Art
- Photographs
- Graphics
- Novels
- Poems
- Music
- Movies
- Sound recordings
- Software code
- Technical articles
- Non-fiction books
Example 1: Stephen King would copyright his new novel to stop it from being used without his permission. If someone wanted to turn his novel into a play or a movie, they would have to get his permission, allowing him to use the copyright to leverage a deal.
Example 2: Beyonce copyrights her songs; if a company wanted to use her song in one of their ads, even if they changed the words, they would need to seek permission from her.
Why Get a Copyright
A copyright allows you the exclusive right to distribute and perform your creative work. This means that if someone wanted to record a cover of your song, they would need permission if they wanted to stream it or sell it. Often, copyright holders would ask for a portion of the profit for the use of the copyright. They can negotiate large exclusivity deals if, for example, a big company wanted sole commercial use of the song for their marketing.