Spotting the Difference between a Copyright and a Trademark

Intellectual property is the creation of the mind, for instance, Inventions, artistic creations, and literary works. Intellectual Property is an intricate term and many a time people use it in the wrong context. The difference between Trademark and Patent have to be entailed very clearly as people frequently have been heard saying “copyrighting an Idea” or “getting a trademark for a book”.

According to World Intellectual Property Organization or WIPO, “Intellectual property refers to creations of the mind: inventions; literary and artistic works; and symbols, names, and images used in commerce”

Trademark and Copyright are used in the subject of Intellectual property. Although the creativity and ideas emerge or develop in human mind you cannot protect the initial idea. When the idea is worked upon and materializes itself, the end product or the final result is protected by Intellectual Property rights.

Trademark Explained:

A trademark is a stamp, word or a phrase that marks the distinction of the goods between the merchandise from different ventures. It is a sign that singles out each product provided by different companies.

When humans started forming cities and communities, artisans used to put up a mark or signature on their creations. Now after almost 5000 years, trademarks have been developed to identify the products and protect the businesses from illegal or unauthorized sellers.

Trademarks help consumers to identify the commodities from different businesses and it actually helps the customers to establish trust in the venture. Some examples of trademark include logos, names, and marks.

Doing a trademark registration makes sure that you have proof of ownership of the product which is valid nationwide. It equips you with exclusive rights that can safeguard your venture from illegal infringements of your trademark.

 

Copyright Explained:

Copyright is a set of rights that you are equipped with after you register your original work. The rights range from reproducing the work, distributing copies, public display of the work, using your work to create another piece.

As an owner of the rights, you can transfer each right to different people or transfer all rights to one person. The transfer can be made by assigning or licensing. You can also choose the platform for displaying your work to the public.

Architects, Artists, dancers, and creative professionals can get copyrights for their pieces. A substantial form of an idea can be copyrighted, therefore, sculptures, movies, lyrics, music, photos, choreography etcetera.

If you copyright a piece, it is literally valid for a lifetime i.e. it doesn’t have a time limit and anyone infringing on your copyright can be sued in a court of law.

Trademark vs. Copyright:

	Trademark	Copyright
Rights provided	The right to use the trademark as well as the right to sue anyone in the court of law who uses the mark without your authorization.	The right to distribute, reproduce, and publicly display the work. The right to create derivative works as well.
The entity to be protected	Any mark, symbol, phrase or slogan that differentiates between the sources of goods of various ventures.	Original works like, articles, sculptures, motion pictures, music, lyrics, photos, books, journals.
Eligibility to get protection	A distinct and different mark that is capable of differentiating different goods.	It should be an original work of creativity.
Expiration date	If only it stays in commerce.	It is valid for an author’s lifetime along with additional 70 years.
Authority of Issuance	Trademarks are approved and reviewed by the General of Patents, Designs, and Trademark under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry	Copyright applications are approved and reviewed by the Registrar of Copyrights, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry