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The term of “exclusive rights” comes from the Ancient Greek and Latin form of monopolium, which refers to the “right to” and it is considered a de facto power to perform an action or to gain from permitting others or denying others the right to the same benefits. It is thus a monopoly right on something.
Exclusive rights are enforceable by law and can be granted in patent, copyright, trademark and design as part of intellectual property.
By registering a patent one thus obtains the exclusive rights to that invention and the benefits associated with such. The same applies for copyrights.
One doesn’t have to register copyrights for a work except for cinematograph films as such are automatically assigned the moment the work takes a tangible form. It can be in the form of performance, broadcasting, writing, music, programming, signalling, painting, sculpting or photographing.
When it comes to patents, one has to register the invention rights, known as patent rights. Certain conditions have to be met such as the invention involving an inventive step, being novel, useful in agriculture or industry, and being not obvious to someone skilled in the trade.
A trademark doesn’t have to be registered, but un-registered trademarks are only protected within the boundaries of common law. Registered trademarks gain the benefits of monopoly rights enforceable by law.
The various countries differ in their requirements for granting exclusive rights, and as such, there are a few treaties in place to ensure consistency and the ability to register intellectual property rights in numerous countries around the world.
To apply for such rights in other countries, a person needs to make use of intellectual property attorneys or agents. Smit & Van Wyk is an intellectual property firm in South Africa that can also handle applications in other countries on behalf of clients.
Contact us today should you wish to register exclusive rights to intellectual property.
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