Ideas Generate IP
Intellectual Property (IP) is an intangible asset that is the product of creative or inventive human thought (setting aside AI for now). Broadly speaking, IP law defines the means to procure, nature, scope and duration of legal rights (IPR) which allow the owner of the right to exclude others from using the owner's IP without permission. IP is generally understood to include patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets.
There are four types of intellectual property:
Copyright is the exclusive legal right, given to an author or the author's assignee to print, publish, perform, film, or record original works of authorship. A copyright exists as soon as an author fixes an original work in a tangible form of expression (such as on a piece of paper, on film, or on a computer disk). The concept of "original works of authorship" is not limited to books and can include, for example, plays, paintings, photographs, illustrations, musical compositions, sound recordings, computer programs, poems, blog posts, movies, and architectural drawings.
Patents give the patent owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for disclosing the invention. A patentable invention is a new, useful, and non-obvious idea, process, or material that can be used in practice.
Trademarks can be comprised of a word, phrase, symbol, or design, either individually or in combination, that identifies goods or services. A trademark allows customers to recognize the source of trademarked goods or services in the marketplace and distinguishes one competitor from another.
Trade Secrets are information that derive independent economic value, actual or potential, from not being generally known to other persons, and are the subject of efforts that are reasonable under the circumstances to maintain their secrecy.
Well known examples of intellectual property include:
Copyrights -- Plays, paintings, photographs, illustrations, musical compositions, sound recordings, computer programs, poems, blog posts, movies, and architectural drawings.
Patents -- Drug formulations, technology, designs, telephone, steam engine, light bulb, internal combustion engine.
Trademarks -- 
Trade Secrets -- Formula for Coca Cola; Google search algorithm; Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe of secret herbs and spices; McDonald’s special sauce recipe for the Big Mac; and, Krispy Kreme Donuts recipe.
Intellectual Property law is comprised of four legal disciplines: Copyright; Patent; Trademark; and, Trade Secrets. Although they sometimes overlap, each of the four IP legal disciplines is distinct.
To further assist you in understanding the four areas of IP law and the differences between them, a quick overview of IP law is available at:
