Definition and Categories of Intellectual Property

Intellectual property refers to the rights of citizens, legal persons or other organizations to possess, use, dispose of and benefit from their intellectual labor achievements, commercial and other specific related objects.

Simply put, it refers to the exclusive rights and privileges enjoyed by creators based on their intellectual achievements for a period of time. Its English name is' intellectual property ', which is commonly referred to as' IP'.

The three common intellectual property rights are trademark, patent, and copyright, which are also collectively referred to as industrial property rights.

However, the scope of intellectual property is relatively broad, and according to relevant laws and regulations, it includes types such as copyright, patent, trademark, geographical indication, trade secret, integrated circuit layout design, etc.

Legal Basis:

Article 123 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China

Civil subjects enjoy intellectual property rights in accordance with the law.

Intellectual property is the exclusive right enjoyed by the right holder in accordance with the law for the following objects:

（1） Works;

（2） Invention, utility model, appearance design;

（3） Trademark;

（4） Geographical indication;

（5） Trade secrets;

（6） Integrated circuit layout design;

（7） New plant varieties;

（8） Other objects specified by law.

The Four Characteristics of Intellectual Property

1. Intangibility

Due to the fact that the object of intellectual property is not tangible material, but non-material works such as intellectual achievements or goodwill, goodwill, or creative inventions, it must rely on a certain material carrier to exist. Therefore, intangibility can also be called non-material.

Generally, obtaining a material carrier does not necessarily mean enjoying the intellectual property rights it carries. In addition, transferring ownership of the material carrier does not necessarily mean transferring the intellectual property it carries at the same time; Infringement of ownership of a material carrier does not necessarily mean simultaneous infringement of the intellectual property it carries.

For example, the published books of a certain author that we have purchased can be divided into two categories:

① The tangible material carrier of publishing books - the object of property rights;

② The textual content in published books - the object of copyright

After purchasing a published book, we acquire ownership, but we do not obtain the copyright in the published book, so we cannot copy or distribute it without authorization.

2. Regional specificity

Intellectual property rights are only protected by law within the territory where they were lawfully acquired, unless there are specific provisions in international treaties, bilateral or multilateral agreements.

This is because intellectual property is not only a legal right, but also a product of a country's public policy, and must exist through mandatory legal provisions. The scope and content of rights are inseparable from various legal provisions in the country.

Simply put, patent rights applied for in China only have legal effect within China; If a trademark is registered in Japan, it will only have legal effect within Japan.

3. Timeliness

The protection period of most intellectual property rights is limited. Once the legal protection period is exceeded, the rights will automatically terminate, and related intellectual achievements will be included in the public domain, becoming a public resource that everyone can use.

According to relevant regulations in China, the protection period of invention patent rights is 20 years; The protection period of the design patent is 15 years; The protection period of utility model patent rights and trademark exclusive rights is 10 years, among which trademark rights can be applied for extension.

The protection period of copyright (works of natural persons) is the author's lifetime plus 50 years; The protection period of copyright (legal person works, audio-visual works) is 50 years after the first publication.

There is no time limit for trade secrets, geographical indications, etc.

4. Exclusivity

Exclusivity refers to the exclusive ownership of intellectual property rights by the rights holder. Without the permission of the intellectual property owner or special legal provisions, no one other than the rights holder may own or use the exclusive rights of intellectual property, otherwise it will constitute infringement.

The role of intellectual property

Intellectual property, like its corresponding tangible property, has value and use value, and can be traded in the market. The utilization of intellectual property mainly includes methods such as transfer, licensing, and pledge.

In the context of the large market that encourages innovation in our country, intellectual property strategy has become an important component of the core competitiveness of enterprise development. At the same time, establishing and implementing an intellectual property management system can also standardize enterprise management, cultivate professional and efficient teams, and prevent business risks.

Legal Basis:

Article 12 of the "Measures for the Security Management and Protection of Computer Information Networks and International Networking" stipulates that interconnected units, access units, legal persons and other organizations using computer information networks and international networking (including units and branch offices connected across provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government) shall, within 30 days from the date of formal network connection, go to the designated accepting authority of the public security organs of the provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government where they are located to handle the filing procedures.

The units listed in the preceding paragraph shall be responsible for reporting the information of the access units and users connected to this network to the local public security organs for filing, and promptly reporting any changes in the access units and users in this network.

Article 23: Those who violate the provisions of Article 11 and Article 12 of these Measures and fail to fulfill their filing responsibilities shall be given a warning or suspended from work for rectification for no more than six months by the public security organs.