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There are no doubts that in this “Knowledge Era” that we are living in, the territory, that in the old times defined the economic power of a nation, is no longer the most valuable good from the economic point of view, and its place has been occupied by intellectual creations, innovations, the usually called "immaterial" goods. The protection of the property rights on one’s immaterial goods, innovations and know how (Intellectual Property), is key for the success or failure of any business project. Intellectual property is related to the creations of the mind: inventions, literary and artistic works, symbols, names, images and the drawings and models used in trade. As its name suggests, intellectual property is a kind of property and this means that its owner or holder can make use of the same as he/she may deem fit and that no other person can legally make use of such property without his/her consent. Naturally, the exercise of this right is subject to limitations. We must point out that the intellectual rights protect the literacy, the aesthetic aspect, the inventiveness of a process, invent, trademark, model, etc., but they do not protect the ideas. They protect their representation in the reality and, eventually, their industrial or commercial applicability. Intellectual Property Rights are divided into two big groups: Copyrights and Industrial Property. Copyrights refer to the so-called “Intellectual Works”, that is to say, those expressions of the spirit that are original and that belong to the world of arts or liberal arts, for instance a book, a painting, a song, a film, or also in the last years, a software, a database or an Internet Web page. Industrial Property includes trademarks, patents, utility models, and industrial models and designs. Although all classes of intellectual property rights are protected by law, the same differ as to the degree and scope of protection and the necessary proceedings in order to have access to such protection. Therefore, the proper categorization of the intellectual creation intended to protect is very important, and for this purposes the same shall have the characteristics that the law requires in order to have access to any specific protection. In most cases, in order to grant the strong protection of the law, the same requires that intellectual properties be registered before the pertinent administrative Entity. The Firm provides advice in all fields of Intellectual Property Rights in connection with the prior analysis, registration, protection and exploitation. The proceeding, the information and the necessary material, the costs and fees will depend on the protection sought, whether for a copyright, a trademark or patent, etc. |
