In today’s rapidly
transforming digital world, mobile apps are continuously evolving. While being
a friend that carries almost every work related to our day to day life, mobile
apps are something that has made us go ‘on-the-fly.’ Be it emailing,
transferring money, or shopping online, mobile applications appear as one of
the best ways of performing our daily basis tasks at the fastest possible
speed. Moreover, developing mobile apps that attract noteworthy users involves
minimal investment, sometimes limiting to as low as a few thousands. These are
the reasons why businesses in large numbers are getting involved in developing
mobile apps, and thus making the market more competitive than ever before.
Undoubtedly, most of the developers keep the competition fair by coming up with
their unique apps, but some never hesitate to make profits by copying the
already existing ones. Hence, it is worth protecting your mobile apps against
replication in the present marketplace where the cost of development might be
low, but protection demands more than the complete creation. Let’s make
ourselves familiar with some Intellectual
Property (IP) tools using which you can prevent
duplication of your mobile apps.
Patents
‘Whether mobile
applications are patentable or not,’ has been a long due question for the past
many years. Well, mobile applications are software interacting with various
servers while running on hardware, and when it comes to examining Patent
Applications related to mobile apps, every country has
different criteria. Hence, we can conclude that there is no straight solution
to whether you can get Patent Protection for your mobile
application in a particular nation or not. For a precise and comprehensive
answer, you should get in touch with an experienced Patent
Attorney.
Nonetheless, in
general, the technological ecosystem of mobile apps is a subject matter for
patentability. For instance, a virtual keyboard, when introduced in mobile
phones, for the first time was a patentable subject matter. Several front end
elements in mobile applications can be patentable for their novelty,
inventiveness, etc. Besides, the ways the mobile apps communicate with a server
or other mobile devices may again list under a subject matter of patentability.
Trademarks
Every mobile
application works in a step-by-step process. For instance, each mobile app
first reaches the online platform, then gets downloaded by users on their
devices, and then continuously used by the users. Be it during online
promotions, downloading, or after downloading, the name and logo of the mobile
application stay the crucial assets as these are what make the customers
identify a particular app. Therefore, securing the name and logo as a Registered
Trademark becomes remarkably significant. Trademark
Registration will not only prevent others from infringing on
your name or logo but also establish goodwill that would captivate the users to
download and use your app. That’s why it is advisable to identify your app
usage and marketing pattern, and thus, obtain specific Trademark
Protection.
Copyright
Another form of
protection for mobile apps is copyright. Since copyright allows protection of
the original work of authorship for literary and creative works, it is
beneficial for securing computing codes and presentation of your mobile apps
during its workflow on different screens. Other features of mobile applications
that can be considered artistic, and therefore, secured under Copyright
Protection include images, videos, sound, etc.
In general, copyright
comes into effect as soon as you create something new and unique, and there’s
no necessity for copyright registration. However, filing a copyright
application for protecting copyrightable aspects of your mobile app would be
essential as it will help you in cases like Copyright
Infringement. Copyright Registration proves to be an efficient
tool for the original owner at the time he/she stands in front of the court. If
you don’t bother to register your mobile application at the earliest, there are
possibilities that you may lose your earnings and business in the hands of
others.
Whether to file one
combined application for multiple subject matters, including user interface,
layouts, images, etc., or separate copyright for each is a noteworthy decision,
and can vary from case to case as well as Copyright
Law of different nations. Hence, you must always
proceed under the supervision of IP experts.
Bottom Line
Mobile applications
are a part of fast-moving technology that continuously changes and comes up
with new aspects. Due to this, mobile apps that often appear just a part of
businesses, at times, become the entire business itself. Ola, a cab service
providing app and WhatsApp, an instant messaging app are the most common
examples where the mobile application has turned into the whole business.
That’s why you should always devise an appropriate Intellectual
Property Protection strategy that lets you extract maximum profits
from your mobile application without worrying about infringers. For view source: https://www.kashishipr.com/blog/intellectual-property-protection-for-your-mobile-apps/
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