WHAT DO WE MEAN BY INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ?
When we refer to “Intellectual Property” we mean the rights which are given to persons over the creations of the human spirit. These rights protect and regulate the relationships that arise between authors, their work and the rest of the world.
The intellectual property of a work corresponds to its author by the mere fact of its creation, but it is highly recommendable to register it as a reliable method to prove its authorship, content and date of creation.
It is advisable though to have a registration or deposit in an official entity recognized by the courts of justice, arbitration courts or administrative bodies.
There are several types of registers that allow to obtain this evidence, among which, the most used nowadays because it is considered “qualified proof” is the registration in the Intellectual Property Registry (article 14.5 of the Intellectual Spanish Property Law).
Confidentiality and know-how contracts, notarial and digital deposits, or the provisions of the Industrial Secrets Act may also be used.
¿DID YOU KNOW THAT.…
in Europe and therefore in Spain, a computer program or a computer application
is not protectable as a patent but as Intellectual Property?
in Europe and therefore in Spain, a computer program or a computer application
is not protectable as a patent but as Intellectual Property?
TYPES OF INTELLECTUAL WORKS
There are different TYPES of INTELLECTUAL WORKS which might enjoy protection under Copyright Law. Among them, we can mention, with no limitation to:
- Artistic works (drawing, painting, sculpture)
- Literary or scientific works.
- Computer programs
- Computer applications
- Websites
- Databases
- Film or theatre works
- Audiovisual works
- Scripts
- Video games and multimedia works
- Musical composition with or without lyrics, musical arrangements, soundtracks, video clips
- Choreographies
- Photographic work
- Engraving or lithographic work
- Graphic work map
- Project work, plan or design of architectural or engineering work
- Comic book or comic book work
- Translations
COPYRIGHT TYPES
As the AUTHOR of an intellectual work, you have several types of rights that you might enjoy. These rights may be assigned in exchange for a financial consideration that is usually called a royalty. However you can only assign the economic rights.
For this reason, as an author, you are interested in knowing what rights do you hold, what you can do with them, and which are those that cannot be waived. Likewise, in case of several authors, you are also interested in knowing what rights are possible to be transferred to third parties.
- AUTHOR’S MORAL RIGHTS are non-transferable : As its creator, you have the right to be recognized as the author’s work, the right to decide to disclose and how to disclose the work, the right to protect the integrity of the work, the right to withdraw the work from the market or the right to access the single copy.
- PATRIMONIAL RIGHTS or rights to exploit the work can be hold in exclusivity but can also be assigned. These rights allow the author or its successors to obtain an economic return from the work. Among them we can highlight the most important ones: the right to reproduce the work, the right to distribute copies of it and how, the right to display the work publicly and the public performance right, the right of transformation which includes its translation, or the right of adaptation.
If you are the author of a work, alone or with others, whatever the work’s nature is, and you have doubts about how to protect it and what are the rights you might transfer, do not hesitate to contact us.
The copyright will last the life of the longest living creator plus an additional 70 years.
DID YOU KNOW THAT…
in Spain authors who have died after 7 December 1979 have theirthe exploitation rights extended to 70 years after his their death?
And WHAT HAPPENS WHEN there are multiple authors?
In that case, the period of 70 years starts counting from the death of the last living AUTHOR.
in Spain authors who have died after 7 December 1979 have theirthe exploitation rights extended to 70 years after his their death?
And WHAT HAPPENS WHEN there are multiple authors?
In that case, the period of 70 years starts counting from the death of the last living AUTHOR.
SERVICES
- Study on the registration or protection of an intellectual work
- Drafting confidentiality agreements
- Advice on the ownership of the exploitation rights of a work (be careful with the participation of several persons in the development or elaboration of a work!)
- Advice and drafting of:
- Contracts for the development of a work in collaboration (such as a computer application, a video game, a music video)
- Contracts for the exploitation and licence of use of certain rights in a work
- Clauses for the assignment of intellectual property rights in employment contracts or self-employed third parties
- Terms and conditions of reproduction, public communication, distribution and other rights of exploitation of the work.
- Use of the Open Source Software and Creative Commons licenses, among others.
- Obtaining:
- Certificates of registration of reservation or transfer of rights.
- Certified publications to demonstrate the disclosure or public availability of a work from a certain date. The digital evidence generated serves as proof with defensive or accrediting character. It can be used, for example, in cases of opposition against improper registrations, especially in the field of patents, utility models and designs.
- Notarial Deposits
- Digital Deposits