License your intellectual property to someone else
License your intellectual property to someone else Let someone else use what you made, on terms you set. Someone wants to use something you created, and they are willing to pay for it. A licence is how you say yes without giving it away: what they may do with it, where, for how long, and […]
Register a trade mark to protect your brand
Register a trade mark to protect your brand Registering your business name isn’t the same as owning it. Registering a business name gives you the right to trade under it. It does not stop anyone else using it, and neither does owning the domain. A registered trade mark is the only one of the three […]
Keep commercial discussions confidential
Keep commercial discussions confidential You cannot unshare information, so the agreement has to come first. There is a conversation you need to have, and it involves telling someone outside your business something you would not want repeated. A confidentiality agreement is what makes that conversation safe to have: what is protected, what they may use […]
License your software to your customers
License your software to your customers Your software reaches people you will never meet, on terms you write once. Every customer who uses your software is using it on terms somebody wrote. If that is a template you found, or an order form with nothing behind it, the terms are working against you in the […]
Take action against someone misusing your IP
Take action against someone misusing your IP Someone is using your work, and what you do next decides whether that stops. You have seen it: your design, your name, your material, being used by someone who never asked. The first question isn’t whether it is unfair, it is what right you actually hold and how […]
It’s all in the name: how to protect your business and domain names
Often, business owners are dealing with problems that they perceive to be important and urgent. They are trying to get a commercial deal done with a third party, they are acquiring a new business, or they are dealing with internal employment matters. Seemingly smaller but potentially more critical issues can get swept under the rug […]
How to really protect your business name
Most people believe that registering a business name means they own that business name – this is not the case in Australia. To obtain the exclusive right to use your business name, you need to register it as a trademark or prove that you hold a trademark at common law.
How do I protect my ‘ideas’?
Most people realise the importance of protecting their Intellectual Property. But ‘ideas’ and ‘concepts’ aren’t a form of IP, as there is no ‘property’ capable of being protected. Don’t despair, there are ways to protect and exploit your interests.