Think of your favorite top 5 consumer products. Do they have anything in common? Most likely, they use intellectual property to strengthen and grow their business.
Think of Coca Cola. It’s a simple product…a beverage. Since its beginning, The Coca Cola Company has successfully integrated intellectual property in a strategic and effective manner to protect, strengthen and drive its business. So can you!
How have they done this? By understanding the pros and cons of the 4 components of intellectual property, and strategically using them in a complimentary manner. In the 1920-1930’s they successfully obtained utility and design patents on their iconic glass bottle. Thereby impeding others, such as competitors and copycats, from copying their bottle for the use of their own products. Since patents do have a limited life span, next move, obtain trademark protection over the bottle design.
In strategically trademarking their bottle design, The Coca Cola Company successfully ensured that others could not copy their design. Trademarks protect much more than just titles and slogans, they can be used to protect smells, colors, sounds and shapes, among other things. In addition to the bottle design, Coca Cola has trademarked its brand name, red color, slogans and tag lines, among other things.
Through copyrights they protect their commercials, promotions, advertising and its contents. With a strategic combination of trademarks and copyrights they protect all things associated with Coca Cola, which in turn has allowed them to further capitalize on and promote their brand through the merchandising of memorabilia such as jute boxes, key chains, t-shirts, caps, glassware and stuffed animals. According to The Statistics Portal the brand value of Coca Cola for 2018 is valued at 79.96 billion U.S. dollars.
Their most important asset, the Coca Cola recipe. This they have protected as a trade secret. Had they sought patent protection over the formula, protection would have expired long ago. Instead, through trade secret, they are able to protect it indefinitely.
Bottom line, it is important you understand the particularities of patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets, in order to effectively set up a strategy which will allow you to strengthen your business. All it takes is the right combination.
Author: Patricia Ramírez Gelpí, J.D., LL.M.
