Understanding Intellectual Property: A Beginner's Guide to the Basics

Welcome to the first volume of our newsletter. In this edition, we aim to introduce the concept of intellectual property in a way that is easy to understand, assuming you are comfortable reading and understanding English. Without an understanding of intellectual property, it is difficult to appreciate the evolving discipline of intellectual property protection, monetization, and securitization, which is the main focus of this newsletter. By providing a simple overview of intellectual property, we hope to make the subject more accessible and encourage readers to engage with this important field.

As humans or entities, we all have something of value that we possess, and that is what is called property. The acquisition of property can occur through various means, such as purchasing, receiving as a gift, inheriting, or finding and keeping. Some properties are immovable, such as land, while others are movable, such as vehicles, generators, and ICU beds. Additionally, property can also be intangible, meaning that it cannot be physically touched or seen, yet it still holds value. The value of property lies in its ability to serve as a resource for the production of goods and services in an economy. Intangible property is what is referred to as intellectual property (IP).

At its core, intellectual property refers to things produced by the creative process of an individual’s thoughts or imagination, that is essential to how we organize and structure our societies, economies, and daily lives. IP is the product of human ingenuity that exists in the form of ideas, concepts, or expressions. It is anything unique originated by an individual, and which has some value in the production of goods and services.

As the owner of any property, you have the right to control and use it, and others have a duty to respect (keep off) your ownership unless you give out beneficial or legal interest, in exchange for money or something. Legal interest refers to the formal ownership of a right over a property, while beneficial interest refers to the right to receive benefits resulting from the property. This is guaranteed by Property law, the law that provides protection to ensure that you can enforce your property rights. Then there is a branch of property law called Intellectual Property Law that specifically concerns Intellectual property. It is designed to safeguard IP and promote economic benefits from IP rights.

While property rights are important, they are not always absolute. This means that they may be limited in some way by the state(government). For example, even though you may own a piece of land, the government may still reserve the right to interfere with your ownership if it needs to convert the land into public property. In fact, intellectual property is the only kind of property that does not belong to the state. The state only comes in to offer protection to keep it safe, rather than state provision. This highlights just how powerful intellectual property rights can be.

Every tangible property has a source, meaning that individuals or entities cannot simply conjure them out of nowhere. However, the good news is, you do not have to own physical possessions like land, vehicles, animals, or homes to be a property owner. As unique individuals, every person has unlimited potential to create new things. From the biblical story of creation, throughout history, every great invention and development has come from someone’s original thought, whether it was a tweak to an existing idea or something entirely new.

If you possess a unique and creative mind (and you should by virtue of being a human being), your contribution to the production of goods and services can be worth far more than any tangible possessions. With the power of your unique thinking and creativity, everyone can make a positive impact on society and become property owners in their own right. What are these intangible things capable of being intellectual property assets?

Intellectual property Assets

Discussions on intellectual property are suddenly so popular these days as if it is some kind of new discovery. The truth is, the concept of intellectual property rights has been around for years. But the problem is that thought leaders often make it seem so complex and difficult to understand, especially for those who are not lawyers.

It is unfortunate that a lot of people actually own or have the potential to own intellectual property, but they do not even realize it. It is like they are being kept in the dark and missing out on something that could be really valuable. So, while we are glad that there are more discussions happening around intellectual property, we wish that it was not always presented to non-lawyers in such a complicated way.

Well, Intellectual property assets refer to various forms of original artistic, literary, or scientific works and usually include things like novels, music compositions, films, artistic works, designs, computer programs, codes, symbols, formulas, images, brands, reputation, packaging, sounds, smell, trade secrets, and inventions. These products may exist in the form of ideas, concepts, or expressions. For purposes of regulation and protection, they are usually categorized into at least four types. The four commonly agreed types include:

i)                  Copyright

ii)                Trademark

iii)              Patents

iv)              Trade secrets

In upcoming issues of this newsletter, and in no sequence, we will delve into the specifics of each category of intellectual property. Connectedly, we will also dive into the areas where the categories overlap, and why it is important to have an intellectual property expert to guide you in protecting your rights, no matter where you are located in the world.

The value of intellectual property lies in its ability to generate revenue for its owner by providing a competitive advantage, encouraging innovation, and incentivizing investment in research and development. Intellectual property also helps to promote creativity, as creators can be assured that their work will be protected from unauthorized use or infringement.

We view Intellectual Property as a critical aspect of business and industry, with the potential to drive economic growth and development. Our goal is to provide accessible and insightful information to individuals and organizations, emphasizing the power of intangible rights that protect commercially valuable products of human intellect. Importantly, it is worth noting that the recognition and protection of IP rights can have a positive impact on economic growth, benefiting individuals and the economy as a whole. When IP is seen as being just as valuable as tangible property and IP owners are given equal access to credit, it can foster a trickle-down effect that drives economic development.

Indeed, loans are an essential component of modern economies as they provide individuals and businesses with access to capital for various purposes. They can drive business investments, innovation, job creation, and consumer spending, thereby supporting individual and collective economic progress.

Traditionally, financiers only accepted immovable property as collateral to secure loans, as movable assets posed difficulties in identification, valuation, and verification. However, today, the worth a person can own in movable property, including Intellectual Property (IP) is significant. Hence, the need to secure loans using movable assets has become increasingly important, even though challenges remain, such as IP valuation, transferability issues, and security concerns.

Despite these challenges, securing loans using IP can be an effective way to access capital for various purposes, such as funding research and development or expanding a business. By recognizing the value of IP, lenders can open up new opportunities for borrowers to grow their businesses and drive economic progress.

If you have any questions or relevant contributions to share about the present or subsequent content, feel free to contact IP CashWise at ipcashwise@gmail.com.

Please subscribe and share with your connections to receive automatic alerts every time we publish a new edition.