Smit & Van Wyk, Inc.

Issues Surrounding Copyright Inventions

It is not possible to copyright inventions such as a motor or any object useful in industry or agriculture. Such inventions are protected under patent laws. When one however, designs a board game and includes cards and rules of play, the rule of playing the game and the wording on the cards can become copyright protected. The art work involved in the invention can be copyright protected. The designs of the play objects however, will be protected under designs, and the logo will be trademarked.

From just looking at the above scenario, one has to appreciate the complexity of intellectual property. Copyright inventions such as the board games or computer software often give rise to disputes over royalties, invention rights, distribution rights, and more. This is especially true when one person designs the board game surface, while another writes the rules of play and another, the background scenario in a role play game. One person takes the pictures and another does the artwork. None of them is employed by one company to do this. They simply worked together to create the board game. The question beckons whom has the most rights to the board game?

The above is just one example of the disputes that can arise from copyright inventions. To solve such a problem before it becomes a stretched out legal battle one has to setup agreements. An intellectual property attorney will be able to assist in determining the ownership of the works and the completed work as well the royalties’ share each one should get and which rights each of the participants in the work has.