Page 63 - Start Up_Genesis

Should innovators discover that they cannot recover
the costs of innovation because of competition from
imitators; this will undermine their incentives to
innovate. This may discourage them from engaging
in innovation. The intellectual property law in such a
case is critical to provide protection and enforcement
mechanism to prevent infringement of IPRs.
Types of IPRs
Below are the major forms of IPRs and the list is
not exhaustive:
Patent: A patent is a monopoly or exclusive rights
granted from a government office for a limited
period to a person who has invented a new and
useful article or an improvement of an existing
article or a new process of making an article. The
patent gives exclusive rights to make, use, and sell
the invention and to assign or transmit the patent
via licensing contracts for a period. After the expiry
of the patent’s duration, anybody can make use of
the invention and the invention is then said to be in
the public domain.
Trademark: A trademark is any distinctive word,
symbol, emblem, name, logo, slogan, letter, drawing,
picture, colour or a combination of colours or trade
dress that a company uses to identify the origin of
a product or to distinguish it from other goods on
the market. It may also be a combination of all the
aforesaid elements. In simple terms, it is what the
company wants itself to be identified with.
For example, in some jurisdictions, scents and
smells can be registered as trademarks. We can
also trademark sound, shapes and configurations of
products such as the Coca Cola bottle.
Copyright: Copyright refers to an exclusive right
to do or allow others to do certain acts in relation
to literary, dramatic, musical, artistic works,
cinematography, and film and sound recordings.
Literary work includes computer programs, books,
music, art, and software. Copyright is the right to
copy or reproduce the work in which copyright
subsists.
Conclusion
Intellectual property law is relevant
for economic development because it
regulates the protection, administration
and enforcement of IPRs. Intellectual
property law prevents third parties from
enjoying research and development efforts
and investments of innovative entities and
individuals without their authorization. By so
doing, it creates incentives for innovation and
creativity. Further, by creating mechanisms
such as licensing of IPRs, the law enables
the distribution of knowledge by making
protected IPRs available to non-right holders
via commercial transactions such as licenses
and assignments.
NOTE: In Zambia, the Patents and
Companies Registration Agency (PACRA) is
mandated to Administer IP related matters.
Sources:
UNECE (2011) Intellectual Property
Commercialization; Policy Options and Practical
Instruments
Vibazone Private Limited (2012) Intellectual
Property Rights and Start-ups- Workshop
Presentation
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