Intellectual property or IP refers to any work or creation of a person, to which he is entitled to or possess rights, as it is a product of his intellect. Intellectual properties include but are not limited to inventions, literary pieces, graphic designs, logos, taglines, and symbols normally used for commercial purposes.

Philippine law

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Today, IPs are considered one of the most significant assets any business can ever have. Intellectual properties are a product of a human’s intelligence and creativity, and should this serve any purpose in a particular industry or organization, then it should rightfully be protected by law. Since most, if not all, IPs are intangible, there really is a need for all of these creations to be guarded and preserved by the law. This is to ensure that the masterminds behind this intelligence or invention are given due credit and recognition for their work.

The Philippines, along with many other states, have designated laws protecting intellectual properties of companies and organizations. In this article, you will further learn about Republic Act No. 8293 and the types of intellectual properties protected by Philippine law.

Republic Act No. 8293

RA 8293 is also known as the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines, which governs and protects all intellectual properties within the Philippines. Basically, the whole act or law states that the Philippines will be administering, preserving, and protecting specific intellectual property rights. With that, a separate Intellectual Property Office was established to administer and implement the State policies declared in this act.

Section 4. Definitions. – 4.1. The term “intellectual property rights” consists of:

  1. a) Copyright and Related Rights;
  2. b) Trademarks and Service Marks;
  3. c) Geographic Indications;
  4. d) Industrial Designs;
  5. e) Patents;
  6. f) Layout-Designs (Topographies) of Integrated Circuits; and
  7. g) Protection of Undisclosed Information (n, TRIPS)

Those mentioned above are the types of intellectual properties protected by Philippine law. Let’s get further into detail:

Copyright and Related Rights

Copyright and other related rights refer to the protection of literary, scientific, and artistic pieces or domain. These may include books and other literary articles, films, paintings, audio or music, and computer or software programs.

The copyright law automatically grants authors and artists protection over their creations or work from the moment they produce it. The benefit of applying for copyright protection over your works is that you automatically get exclusive rights to use your piece and allow other people or organizations to use your work so long as both parties agree on common terms and conditions. The rightful owner and holder of the copyright protection can either authorize or prohibit the reproduction of their work in any way, shape, or form.

Trademarks and Service Marks

Meanwhile, trademarks could be a word, a group of words, signs and symbols, logos, or a combination of all, which identifies the primary source or origin of products and services as one entity differing from the rest.

Businesses usually apply for trademark rights and protection as it can give significant competitive edges. Aside from that, a trademark protects your business’ identity in such a vast industry. Registering for trademark protection gives you, the rightful owner, exclusive rights in preventing other people or companies from using it for exploitation and such. Additionally, trademarks can be a good source of income through licensing and franchise.

Geographic Indications

A geographic indication can either be a name or a sign used by and for a particular product from a specific geographical location. This may act as a guarantee or a right that a certain product may possess specific qualities, characteristics, and reputation only to its [geographical] origin.

Basically, applying for rights and protection over geographic indications can give you a specific authorization over certain products, which can also be a source of [higher] income. Aside from that, its geographic origin can get widely known for producing such product, which is also a point of advantage.

Industrial Designs

Industrial designs could either be three-dimensional features (with shapes and surfaces) or two-dimensional ones (with patterns, lines, or color). Essentially, industrial designs could be any handicraft, vehicle, jewelry, fashion pieces, appliances, and a whole lot more.

Your benefit as the owner of an industrial design is prohibiting other parties from producing and selling your goods that bear the exact same embodiment or design, which is basically a copy.


Patens are usually granted to inventors, which provide products or solutions to technical problems concerning any field in the human activity. However, patents should be new, inventive, and industrially applicable. These are the three categories or criteria that inventors have to go through first before getting a government-issued right and protection over the invention. All these you can discuss with an experienced Philippine patent lawyer.

Patent owners are granted exclusive rights in preventing other people from making, using, or selling the output of his creation during the entire validity of the patent; this is because patent registration can only last up to a specific number of years, depending on the registrant.

Layout-Designs or Topographies of Integrated Circuits

These types of designs are usually three-dimensional elements or forms intended for manufacturing. Owners of this invention or idea are granted rights in preventing other parties from using the registered item or device for commercial purposes. Topographies, as compared to invention patents, are relatively inexpensive, easier to acquire, with fewer requirements needed.

Protection of Undisclosed Information

If anything, this might be the most crucial out of all types of intellectual properties that need the protection of the law.

Undisclosed information is usually very important or vital information that may either bring great benefits or danger and panic to the entire state. More often than not, the government tries to filter and publish only those content that would not cause trauma or fear among the nation. Typically, undisclosed information is discussed in closed-door, no-media meetings and conferences.

Judging by how crucial and confidential it may sound, that’s the very reason why it’s part of the Philippine law’s IP protection. Undisclosed information often hold something very valuable and relevant for the entire state; thus, the security.

Wrapping Up

All these intellectual properties have differing benefits–commercial, industrial, or economic–to the state, that is why the government of the Philippines strives to grant security and protection over such assets. Aside from governing these IP bodies, it also helps encourage more businesses and individuals to continue producing intellectual properties, which can be a great advantage of the state when it comes to globalization.

Author’s Bio:

wrWilliam Ross may not be a lawyer by profession, but he’s one of the sharpest writers out there when it comes to intellectual property rights. Armed with considerable knowledge and gifted with impeccable writing skills, he can surely deliver engaging IP-related content.