The Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), indicates as some of the categories of intellectual property the following rights:
- Trade Secrets
- Patents
- Trademarks
Trade Secrets
The World Intellectual Property Organization defines Trade Secret as intellectual property rights over confidential information that can be sold or licensed. In general, to be considered a trade secret, the information must be:
- commercially valuable because it is secret,
- known only to a limited number of persons, and
- subject to reasonable measures to keep it secret by the person who legitimately controls it, including the use of confidentiality agreements between partners and employees.
The industrial secret is contemplated within our industrial property law of Honduras which is defined as any undisclosed information that a natural or juridical person possesses, which may be used in any productive, industrial or commercial activity, and which is susceptible of being transmitted to a third party. [1]
What type of information can be protected as an industrial secret?
Any type of information that gives a competitive advantage to a company can be protected as a trade secret. Here are some examples for better reference:
- Prescriptions
- Test data of pharmaceutical products
- Software designs and drawings
- Commercial information such as distribution methods, list of suppliers, customers, and advertising strategies
- Manufacturing methods
- Financial information
Examples[2]
- One of the best known trade secrets is the Coca-Cola Formula. The secret is kept in a guarded vault which is said to be accessible only to 2 managers, who never travel together in case of preventing any accidents. The formula was created by the pharmacist John Pemberton and was handwritten in 1886.
- The google algorithm includes more than 500 developments, every year, as they seek to improve the search that each person performs.
Patents
It is an exclusive right granted by the State for the protection of an invention. The main purpose of registering a patent is to use and exploit your invention preventing third parties from using it without your consent.
In order for a patent to be registrable it must meet 3 requirements: [3]
- Be novel: it must not have existed in the state of the art prior to its application.
- It must have an inventive level: it must not be obvious from the prior art.
- Be susceptible of industrial application: it can be produced or used in any type of industry.
Examples[4]
- It is considered that John Utyman made the first patent in history in 1449. The patent covered a glass manufacturing process that was later used as the basis for developing new ways of creating and processing glass.
- Many technologies associated with a commercial name have also been patented, such as the one used in the Ipod, which Steve Jobs patented in 2007. It is important to mention that the iPod is a trademark, however, the technology with which it is used is the result of a patent.
- Drone, patented in 1962 by Edward G. Vanderlip, promises to completely change the way merchandise is marketed.
Trademarks
A trademark is any sign used to distinguish products, services, or industrial and commercial establishments in the market.
The main characteristic of a trademark is that it must have distinctive character, that is to say, it must be capable of being distinguished from other trademarks existing in the market, so that the consumer does not fall into confusion and can differentiate a product or service from another of the same or identical kind existing in the market.
[1] Article 73 of the Industrial Property Law of the Republic of Honduras.
[2] https://listas.20minutos.es/lista/diez-secretos-mejor-guardados-del-mundo-diez-productos-mas-famosos-del-mundo-395315/
[3] Articles 8, 9 and 10 of the Industrial Property Law of the Republic of Honduras.
[4] https://noticias.universia.edu.uy/cultura/noticia/2018/06/18/1160273/5-patentes-cambiaron-mundo.html
All the above mentioned intangible intellectual property rights are protected by the Honduran legislation, it is important at the moment of creating any of them to identify what type it is in order to proceed with the adequate protection of the same and make the most of it.