Morgan Miller Blair

“Intellectual Property”, or IP, is one of those things that used to be important to only a few small business owners involved in very narrow industries, most typically inventors and writers. While there are very few things I miss about my lawyering days, IP is one of them. It was always interesting to meet and speak with entrepreneurs who were busy creating something that needed protection.
 
But these days, just as the Web has changed everything else, it has also changed both the nature of IP law and which small business owners need to be concerned about IP.
 
I am talking to you.
 
Today, almost every small business needs to understand, and understand how to protect, their Intellectual Property. There are several reasons for this:
 
1.  We are living in the Information Age. Much of what we create today is based upon information.
2.  We are all publishers now. Between websites, blogs, social media and more, the ease of publishing online makes protecting those creations vital.
3.  Stealing is easier. Bootlegging content, stealing code, pilfering ideas and the like is simply much easier in a copy and paste world.
4.  Branding is vital: Because small businesses are so much more attuned to the need for a brand and all that entails, protection the intellectual capital of your brand is a necessity.
 
So yes, all small businesses need to be concerned with protecting their IP. But before I explore how to do that, let’s just make sure we are on the same page as to what constitutes Intellectual Property.
 
Generally, Intellectual Property relates to patents, copyrights, trade secrets, and trademarks. (Note: I recently communicated with Terence Church, an experienced, sharp and savvy IP lawyer in the Silicon Valley with Morgan Miller Blair. Much of the information in this piece comes from my interaction with Mr. Church. Many thanks!)

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This article is reprinted with permission from American Express OPEN Forum and its author, Steve Strauss, www.MrAllBiz.com.