Intellectual property protection for small businesses is essential to safeguard your brand, products, and creative work. Whether it’s a logo, invention, or design, having the right type of IP protection helps prevent others from copying or stealing your ideas. This guide outlines the types of protection available and how to access them through the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO).
Having the right type of intellectual property protection helps you to stop people stealing or copying:
- The names of your products or brands
- Your inventions
- The design or look of your products
- Things you write, make or produce
Copyright, patents, designs and trademarks are all types of intellectual property (IP) protection. You get some types of protection automatically, others you have to apply for.
The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) and .gov.uk is the key source of information for your business
- Searching for a trademark
- Registering a trademark
- Searching for a patent
- Searching for a registered design
- Applying for a patent
The Intellectual Property Office offers a free online IP Health Check.
