• Latest
  • All
  • How To
Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property 101 for Techies

April 4, 2017
Apple-Glasses

Apple to Reportedly Launch Smart Glasses by 2026 to Rival Meta, Google

May 23, 2025
OpenAI

OpenAI Looks To Get Into Hardware Market After Acquiring Startup For $6.5B

May 23, 2025
Infinix GT 30 Pro

Infinix Unveils the GT 30 Pro with 120 FPS Certification for PUBG

May 22, 2025
Microsoft Recall

Signal Blocks Microsoft Recall Feature to Protect Private Chats

May 22, 2025
DHgate Tablet Cases deals
Infinix XPad GT

The Infinix XPad GT Gaming Tablet Makes Its Debut at $400

May 22, 2025
Passport Application

How to Apply for a Kenyan Passport Online in 2025: A Complete Guide

May 22, 2025
google-chrome

Google Chrome Will Start Automatically Replacing Your Weak Passwords

May 22, 2025
telegram

Telegram Posts $540m Profit Despite Founder’s Legal Hurdles

May 22, 2025
ID Checks May Soon Be Required for Social Media in Kenya

ID Checks May Soon Be Required for Social Media in Kenya

May 21, 2025
Safaricom launches revamped business loans

Safaricom Unveils Business Credit via M-PESA and Pochi Wallets

May 21, 2025
huwaei-matebook-x-fold

Huawei Debuts Foldable Laptop Running on HarmonyOS 5

May 21, 2025
google-meet

Google Meet Brings Real-Time Language Translation with Gemini

May 21, 2025
Techweez | Tech News, Reviews, Deals, Tips and How To
  • News
  • Entertainment
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • Editorial
No Result
View All Result
Techweez | Tech News, Reviews, Deals, Tips and How To
  • News
  • Entertainment
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • Editorial
No Result
View All Result
Techweez | Tech News, Reviews, Deals, Tips and How To
No Result
View All Result

Intellectual Property 101 for Techies

June Okal by June Okal
April 4, 2017
in Editorial, Opinion
Reading Time: 4 mins read
257
4
Intellectual Property

Credit: https://chu.house.gov/issues/intellectual-property

You have an idea! You’ve heard about intellectual property. That apparently you could protect this idea and keep it from others who may intend to ‘steal it’! You’ve probably asked, “can I patent my idea?”, Well, that’s every IP lawyer’s nightmare.

Here’s 5 things you need to know about intellectual property.

1. You Cannot Patent an Idea

Ideas are great, they’re awesome. If implemented they could be worth a million dollars. However, the value of this ‘great’ idea really is nil.

Ideas are not protected, we all have ideas. Some may actually be similar; the execution however, is what will differentiate the worth of each idea.

Intellectual property protects expression of ideas in tangible form which could then be lines of code, machines and hardware, tangible tools etc.

Copyright covers expressions of the mind which could be expressed in writing as literary works so stories, books, poems, software etc., sound recordings such as musical beats, sound productions and tunes, musical works such as songs, audio visual works such as videos and films. Of importance is that in Kenya, software is protected under copyright.

Trademarks covers names and phrases of products which have gained notoriety and are recognized across the board. For instance, ‘usiseme mkate, sema Supaloaf’ or ‘the home of value’. Also all the logos and marks e.g. The Nike tick, the bitten Apple, the Techweez T.

Service marks are names and terms used to identify specific services.

Patent rights protects processes, devices or products. It has to be an invention, have industrial applicability and be extremely novel and new. These generally cover hardware.

2. Know Who To Go To

Our Kenyan legal system recognizes different forms of intellectual property. These are trademarks, patents and utility models and copyright.  We have two relevant bodies, the Kenya Copyright Board and the Kenya Industrial Property Institute.

Copyright is  governed under the copyright act and institutional responsible is the Kenya Copyright Board. The board offers application, registration and  verification of copyright.

Additionally, the Board maintains a database of all creative works of the mind that are registered which is accessible here.
Questions? Tweet at @kenyacopyright, email [email protected] or go to the NHIF Building 5th floor, just cause you can.

Pretty much everything else other than traditional knowledge is under the mandate  of the Kenya Industrial Property Institute and governed under the Industrial Property Act and The trademarks Act. KIPI covers trademarks, service marks, patents, utility models, industrial designs.

The process of registration and management of trademarks are relatively technical and I would advise procuring the services of a legal professional lest you get mixed up in the TM forms and application in series jargon. (See no. 5) Tweet KIPI at or just go to their office in south C off Mombasa Road, near Bellevue.

Even more complicated are patents and utility models applications, it takes about 3 years on average to have a patent registered because of the rigorous and complex process involved. Get a patent agent to advise you or walk through the process with assistance from the Institute.

3. You Have to Disclose in Order to get Protected

It is critical to understand that the price for protection is disclosure. For you to get legal protection for your innovation and creativity, you must disclose it to the authorities. This is because one, it must be indeed innovative and new if it’s not then it’s not novel; also, for the development and maintenance of an innovation database.
The state is seen as a custodian of all including your innovation  and it is expected that they shall uphold and protect it. In case of disallowed disclosure and damage resulting you can actually sue the state.

That being said, if you don’t want to disclose you can use trade secrets which is a form of IP where you don’t have to share with anyone your processes and secrets. Think Coca Cola and KFC recipes.

4. Who owns What

You’re working for a tech multi-national, perhaps at the research lab. You’ve been working on this project to come up with an ingenious solution or there’s this one error in the system no one get around. As an employee, you figure it out and fix it. Great idea! Bad news, that intellectual property is not yours, it’s the company’s.
Depending on the relationship and contract you have with the third party, this work of your mind could actually end up belonging to someone else.

Another common illustration especially in the start-up scene is you’re a group of friends, several start-up founders. Each with a different role. A is the face of the company and perhaps even registered it alone as the sole shareholder. B, you, is the techie. The brains behind the app, coder extraordinaire, you can identify a misplaced comment in your lines of code from miles away. Your software ends up being one of the best and most talked about solutions. Guess what, if you hadn’t defined that relationship you could end up losing out.

There may be instances of joint ownership where each person has some share of the work. It could also be registered under the partnership or company name.

DTR your situationships. Define the relationships which takes me to the next point.

5. Get a Lawyer

We generally don’t like them, damn these suits and their darn expensive fee notes… Until you get into a run in with the government or you grow too big too fast, crisis hits and then you find them.

Find a good lawyer who understands your industry and product well. They will guide you on the best entity vehicle to use to run your business. They’ll come up with contracts which clearly define the relationships between you, your partners, employees and contractors if any, your investors and shareholders.(See no. 4)

They’ll advice you on the tax obligations, industry compliance rules, licenses and required permits. (Side bar, you probably know that the Aviation Authority now provides for Drones regulation, do you have any idea how to go about application for the same?)

Talk. to. a. lawyer.

In conclusion, to demystify the key IP terms, think of your mobile phone, take an Apple iPhone 6 the names Apple and iPhone are trademarks because the names has gained notoriety arguably globally and when you hear the name you immediately correlate it to certain traits for instance quality, high end value and data protection. The OS (operating system) iOS is the software and thus falls under Copyright, the physical model, screen and edges are patentable.

Now you know why you can’t patent your idea. 

This article is in honor of World Intellectual Property Day, slated for the 26th of April this year. 

SendShare148Tweet92
June Okal

June Okal

'I speak legalese, understand the tech and hack the law.' June Okal is a legal professional in Technology, Media and Telecommunications Law Practice and Co - Organizer of Nairobi Legal Hackers. Her focus areas are Innovation, Intellectual Property and Internet Governance.

Related Posts

Apple-Glasses

Apple to Reportedly Launch Smart Glasses by 2026 to Rival Meta, Google

May 23, 2025
OpenAI

OpenAI Looks To Get Into Hardware Market After Acquiring Startup For $6.5B

May 23, 2025
Infinix GT 30 Pro

Infinix Unveils the GT 30 Pro with 120 FPS Certification for PUBG

May 22, 2025
Microsoft Recall

Signal Blocks Microsoft Recall Feature to Protect Private Chats

May 22, 2025
Infinix XPad GT

The Infinix XPad GT Gaming Tablet Makes Its Debut at $400

May 22, 2025
Passport Application

How to Apply for a Kenyan Passport Online in 2025: A Complete Guide

May 22, 2025

Latest

Apple-Glasses

Apple to Reportedly Launch Smart Glasses by 2026 to Rival Meta, Google

May 23, 2025
OpenAI

OpenAI Looks To Get Into Hardware Market After Acquiring Startup For $6.5B

May 23, 2025
Infinix GT 30 Pro

Infinix Unveils the GT 30 Pro with 120 FPS Certification for PUBG

May 22, 2025
Microsoft Recall

Signal Blocks Microsoft Recall Feature to Protect Private Chats

May 22, 2025
Infinix XPad GT

The Infinix XPad GT Gaming Tablet Makes Its Debut at $400

May 22, 2025
Passport Application

How to Apply for a Kenyan Passport Online in 2025: A Complete Guide

May 22, 2025

Best devices

budget smartwatches 2025

Best Budget Smartwatches To Buy in Kenya 2025

February 13, 2025

Best Infinix Smartphones To Buy in Kenya 2024

February 13, 2025

Best Laptops for Battery Life in 2024

August 21, 2024

Best “Battery Warrior” Smartphones To Buy in 2024

August 22, 2024

Apple to Reportedly Launch Smart Glasses by 2026 to Rival Meta, Google

May 23, 2025

OpenAI Looks To Get Into Hardware Market After Acquiring Startup For $6.5B

May 23, 2025

Techweez is a fast growing influential source of technology news, reviews and analysis by leading tech geeks in the industry.

Follow Us

Editorials

Samsung QLED TVs Now Officially Certified for Real Quantum Dot Technology

Trump’s Tariffs Will Be the End of Affordable Tech

5 Ways to Prep Your Tech for Resale

The Weaponization of PDFs: How Cybercriminals Are Exploiting a Trusted Format

Introducing A Brainbox Quiz: Techweez’s Monthly Trivia Night!

5 Most Reliable Virtual Dollar Card Providers in Nigeria

More News

Google Chrome Will Start Automatically Replacing Your Weak Passwords

Telegram Posts $540m Profit Despite Founder’s Legal Hurdles

ID Checks May Soon Be Required for Social Media in Kenya

Safaricom Unveils Business Credit via M-PESA and Pochi Wallets

Huawei Debuts Foldable Laptop Running on HarmonyOS 5

Google Meet Brings Real-Time Language Translation with Gemini

  • Terms Of Use
  • Techweez Brand
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact Us

© 2024 Techweez - Palahala Media Group may earn a commission when you buy through links on our sites.
A Palahala Media Group Brand. All rights reserved.
.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

Techweez | Tech News, Reviews, Deals, Tips and How To
Crunchy Cookies 🍪 Ahead!

Hey there! Just a heads-up: we're big fans of cookies - both the digital and edible kind! 🍪 We use our cookies and some from third parties to ensure your browsing experience on our site is smooth sailing and secure.

 

But wait, there's more! We also use cookies to gather stats and insights on how you navigate our site. It's like getting a behind-the-scenes peek at your digital adventures!

 

Don't worry, you're in control. You can adjust your cookie settings anytime to suit your preferences. Feeling curious? Dive into our Privacy Policy for all the juicy details. Happy browsing! 🚀

Functional Always active
Listen, this legal stuff is about as exciting as watching paint dry. But it basically says we only use your stuff for what you asked us to do, and nobody else gets to peek!
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
It's those sneaky cookie crumbs websites leave behind to count visitors, like counting ants at a picnic! Totally harmless, just for fun facts. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
Hey there! Just letting you know we use some fancy gizmos to remember your preferences. This way, we can show you ads that are, well, not completely bananas.
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
Make cookies
{title} {title} {title}
Techweez | Tech News, Reviews, Deals, Tips and How To
Crunchy Cookies 🍪 Ahead!
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
Listen, this legal stuff is about as exciting as watching paint dry. But it basically says we only use your stuff for what you asked us to do, and nobody else gets to peek!
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
It's those sneaky cookie crumbs websites leave behind to count visitors, like counting ants at a picnic! Totally harmless, just for fun facts. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
Hey there! Just letting you know we use some fancy gizmos to remember your preferences. This way, we can show you ads that are, well, not completely bananas.
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
Make cookies
{title} {title} {title}
No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • Editorial
  • Automotive
  • Entertainment

© 2024 Techweez - Palahala Media Group may earn a commission when you buy through links on our sites.
A Palahala Media Group Brand. All rights reserved.
.