Learn
The basics of
IP, in plain language.
Most indie creators were never taught this. A name, a drawing, the shape of a product, and a recipe are all protected (or not protected) by entirely different bodies of law. This page walks through each category in plain language, with examples you can recognise, and what does and doesn’t count.
Havenmark IP is an awareness tool. Nothing on this page is legal advice. For any specific situation, consult a qualified IP attorney in your jurisdiction.
The categories
Six ways a creation can be protected.
Trademark
Duration: Indefinite, as long as you keep using it (and renew the registration on the office's schedule).
Names, logos, and signs that identify a product or service in the market.
Eligible subject matter
- The name of your podcast, shop, or label
- A logo or symbol that identifies your service
- A distinctive tagline you use consistently
Excluded from protection
Generic descriptions of what you sell. Names too similar to existing marks in the same class. Names you do not actually use in commerce.
Conditions for protection
The mark must be distinctive (not just descriptive) and not conflict with prior marks in the same goods or services category. In most countries you get protection through use; registration significantly strengthens it and is required in some jurisdictions to enforce.
Copyright
Duration: Long. Typically the author's life plus 50 to 70 years depending on jurisdiction.
Original creative expression - text, images, music, video.
Eligible subject matter
- Episode scripts, blog posts, newsletters, books, zines
- Original illustrations, photos, songs, videos
- Software code you wrote yourself
Excluded from protection
Ideas, facts, common phrases, names, titles, or short slogans. Style itself - only specific expression. Fully AI-generated outputs without meaningful human authorship.
Conditions for protection
The work must be original and fixed in some tangible form. Protection is automatic in most major jurisdictions the moment the work is fixed - no registration required (though registration is needed to sue in some places, like the US).
Design right
Duration: Up to 25 years in the EU/UK with registration; less and shorter for unregistered design rights.
The look and shape of a product - the visual design, not what it does.
Eligible subject matter
- The signature shape of a ceramic mug
- The silhouette of a chair you designed
- A distinctive bottle or packaging form
Excluded from protection
Designs dictated purely by function. Common shapes already in the public domain. Looks identical to prior designs.
Conditions for protection
The design must be new and have individual character relative to what was already publicly available. Some jurisdictions (EU, UK) protect unregistered designs automatically for a short window; registration extends protection significantly.
Trade secret
Duration: Indefinite - as long as it stays secret. The moment it becomes public, the protection ends.
Information that has commercial value precisely because it is kept confidential.
Eligible subject matter
- A recipe with a specific ingredient ratio you do not publish
- A manufacturing process you keep internal
- A customer list you treat as confidential
Excluded from protection
Anything that is publicly available. Information you have not actually taken steps to keep secret. Reverse-engineerable information that any competitor can derive from the public product.
Conditions for protection
The information must (1) have commercial value precisely because it is secret, (2) be subject to reasonable steps to keep it secret (NDAs, access controls, marking documents confidential).
Patent
Duration: Up to 20 years from the filing date.
New technical inventions, processes, or mechanisms with industrial application.
Eligible subject matter
- A new technical mechanism in a physical product
- A novel chemical or biological process
- A genuinely new way of doing a technical thing
Excluded from protection
Aesthetics (use design rights). Software business methods in many jurisdictions. Anything obvious to a person skilled in the field.
Conditions for protection
Must be new, inventive (non-obvious), and capable of industrial application. Patents require formal filing with full disclosure and specialist legal support. Most indie creative work does not involve patentable subject matter.
Other rights
Duration: Varies. Typically tied to the underlying work or the person involved.
Categories outside the main five, often jurisdiction-specific.
Eligible subject matter
- Your right to control commercial use of your name and likeness (publicity rights)
- Performers' rights and producers' rights in music recordings (neighbouring rights)
- Database rights (sui generis right in the EU)
Excluded from protection
Highly jurisdiction-specific - what counts as a 'right' here varies country to country. Treat this as a category to ask a local attorney about.
Conditions for protection
Varies enormously by jurisdiction. Some are automatic, some require registration, some only kick in when there is a commercial relationship (e.g. a brand wanting to use your name).
Common mistakes
The pitfalls most creators hit.
Patterns we see in real projects. Each one is the kind of thing a 30-minute chat with an IP attorney saves later.
Thinking copyright covers your name
It does not. Names, titles, and short slogans are not protected by copyright in any major jurisdiction. Names live in trademark territory.
Assuming "royalty-free" means "any use, forever"
Royalty-free music or stock images often have license terms that exclude merchandise, paid sponsorships, or large-scale reproduction. Always read the actual licence.
Believing AI-generated images are automatically yours
Under current US, EU, and UK guidance, fully AI-generated outputs without meaningful human authorship are not protected by copyright. Treat them as decorative, not as brand assets you can claim ownership over.
Splitting work 50/50 "verbally" with a collaborator
Without a written agreement, ownership of jointly created work can be ambiguous and hard to enforce. A simple written split saves real pain later.
Posting your trade secret online
The moment a trade secret becomes publicly available - including through your own social media - the protection ends. There is no taking it back.
Filing a trademark in too many or too few classes
Trademarks are scoped to specific goods and services. Filing too narrowly leaves obvious extensions unprotected; filing too broadly raises cost and the risk of conflict. Worth raising with an attorney exactly which categories matter.
Talking about an invention publicly before filing a patent
In most jurisdictions, publicly disclosing an invention (a demo, a Kickstarter page, a podcast appearance) before filing a patent application can destroy its novelty and make the invention unpatentable. If you think there is a patentable mechanism in what you have built, talk to a patent attorney before publishing anything about it.
How Havenmark IP fits in
Havenmark IP reads your project, then tags each spotted asset with the most likely category from this page.
The map will say e.g. “your show name -> trademark territory, conditions to verify with a lawyer.” What the map does NOT do is tell you that you own something - that is a determination only an attorney can make. Use this page to understand what each tag means; use the map to see what categories your specific project is touching.
Ready to see your own map