It is common to refer to patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets as “Intellectual Property” or IP. However, each type of IP has its own set of rules and legal precedents (cases). Each type of IP is uniquely defined:
Patents: useful, novel, non-obvious inventions that only we can make
Trademarks: our identity in the marketplace ™ and ®
Copyrights: original expressions of ideas ©
Trade Secrets: what we know that others may not know.