Intellectual Property Registration

The registration of all Intellectual Property in South Africa is done by the Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (CIPRO) in Pretoria. CIPRO is a division of the Department of Trade and Industry. If you happen to be the owner of intellectual property, then to protect your rights to that property, you should have it registered with CIPRO (with the exception of copyright, which is dealt with below).

There are four distinct types of intellectual property recognized in South Africa, and these are protected by four Acts of Parliament. These are the Patents Act, the Copyright Act, the Trademarks Act and the Designs Act.

A patent is an exclusive right granted to an inventor for an invention, which is a product or a process that provides a new way of doing something, or that offers a new technical solution to a problem. The patent provides protection for the owner and gives him or her the right to prevent others from making, using, exercising, disposing of the invention, offering to dispose, or importing the invention. The protection is granted for a limited period and this is normally for 20 years. Registration of patents is best carried out by a qualified patent attorney. Patent attorneys are well versed in the requirements of the law regarding patents, especially when it comes to the required patent specification, which is quite involved. Once a final patent has been granted it covers the owner’s rights for a period of twenty years.

Trade marks are another important division of intellectual property and constitute an extremely valuable asset to most companies. Trade marks can be depicted in several ways. They may be a logo, a brand name or a slogan. Although a trade mark may be defended under common law, it may only be defended under the Trade Marks Act if it is registered with CIPRO. Once a trade mark is registered, no one else may use that trade mark or a similar one that may be confused with it. Trade marks may apply to either products or to the services of a company and serve to distinguish the goods and services of such a company or individual from the goods and services of another.

Industrial designs may also be registered with CIPRO. Registered designs themselves fall into two separate categories in South Africa , viz. aesthetic designs and functional designs. The registration of designs is governed by the South African Designs Act. Registering a design ensures exclusive right to use the design. If anybody tries to copy, sell or use the design without permission, this could result in legal action. Although it is not compulsory to conduct a search to check the originality of the design or that the same or similar design is not registered – it is advisable to do so, before filing for registration. A search can be conducted at the Designs Office in Pretoria. It must be done personally or by an agent such as a patent attorney. Please contact Smit & Van Wyk Intellectual Property Attorneys to conduct such a search on your behalf.

The fourth type of intellectual property is copyright, and the Copyright Act protects the following categories of works:

• Literary works (books and written composition, novels, poems etc.)
• Musical works
• Artistic works (paintings, sculptures and drawings)
• Cinematograph films
• Sound recordings
• Broadcasts (broadcasting of films or music)
• Programme-carrying signals (signals embodying a programme)
• Published editions (first print by whatever process)
• Computer programs

Most of these categories do not need intellectual property registration, but films and videos do. If in doubt consult Smit & Van Wyk intellectual property lawyers.