If you own a business, you may find certain intellectual property (IP) issues especially relevant. Sometimes businesses face problems simply because the owner isn’t aware of how to protect their rights.
For example, if you’re selling a product, it may be protected in several ways: you might register a trademark, obtain a design patent, or protect the underlying technology with a utility patent.
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has developed a special tool to assess your business for protectable IP assets – WIPO IP Diagnostics. It’s free and doesn’t require registration on the WIPO website.
This tool is an excellent introduction to IP, especially useful for small businesses. It helps you understand how to increase your commercial potential through IP, whether your business includes potentially protectable IP assets, and how to protect and manage them.
The tool is structured as a step-by-step questionnaire. An initial assessment of ten questions about your business leads to a second-level evaluation consisting of several sections that address different IP areas. The second-level questions are generated automatically based on your first-level answers and relate to topics such as trademarks, trade secrets, industrial designs, inventions or innovative products, licensing, website creation, and more.
After completing each section, the system generates a downloadable report containing information on relevant IP issues and recommendations for managing your IP rights. These reports can be highly useful for developing an IP strategy for your business.
WIPO IP Diagnostics is just one of many tools WIPO offers for businesses. You can find more tools and useful information here.
And if, as a result of using this tool, you decide to register a trademark, file a patent application for an invention or design, or seek advice on other IP matters – our experts are here to provide you with qualified assistance.
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