Introduction
The paper is first going to define major terms as used in this paper and then then give a brief description of the company in question; Procter and gamble company. In order to give a detailed analysis of the Intellectual Portfolio of Procter and Gamble, the paper will divide the Intellectual Properties into the three major ones claimed by the Procter and Gamble, Patents, Trademarks and Designs[ CITATION Rya08 \l 1033 ].
In each intellectual property, the paper will give the meaning of the property and give an account of the provisions of the law regarding the same. The paper will then analyze how the company ensures the protection of each of the intellectuals Properties. An example of the intellectual Property owned by the company will be given to enhance understanding[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ]. The paper will then explore on how the company benefits through the policies put in place in regard to their intellectual Properties.
An account of the legal team ensuring the protection of the intellectual rights of the company will be put under the spectrum and how the team works[ CITATION Dou08 \l 1033 ]. The paper will give a brief recommendation concerning the legal mechanisms put in place on their intellectual Properties and the economic sense of these policies.
Procter and gamble is a company started in the early 19th century by two men, proctor and gamble who had married in the same family[ CITATION Rya08 \l 1033 ].
Intellectual Property is a term used to refer to the exclusive rights to a creation of the mind by a person. These rights are then lawfully awarded to the person or the company responsible for the same. The parties involved use the term property to denote the possession of these rights. Intellectual Property include a set of intangible assets belonging to a party, these rights very from copyrights, trademarks, patents, designs amongst others[ CITATION Dou08 \l 1033 ].
A portfolio is a list of something, in this case, it would mean a list of the company’s Intellectual Property[ CITATION Rob03 \l 1033 ].
Procter and Gamble
Procter and Gamble is a multinational company that majors in the production of in-house consumer goods; a legacy with which it was founded. It has a high financial turn out and is listed in the NYSE and is listed among the fortune 500 companies in the USA[ CITATION Bru02 \l 1033 ]. Proctor and Gamble Company have engaged in many innovations in their respective fields of production, to ensure they gain from the innovations it was crucial to come up with policies that made economic sense[ CITATION Gor05 \l 1033 ]. Initially Procter and Gamble totally denied their competitors the rights to use the technology they came up with or even borrow their ideas or even designs of products. This spurred a hot competition and Procter designed a new way to use their innovations and creations to gain[ CITATION Bru02 \l 1033 ].
Trademarks
A trademark may be defined as a sign or even an indicator by a legal entity: a company, individual or even a business organization to mark their products or to identify to their customers that the products or services associated by that mark are from a unique source, which also identifies with the sign or indicator. Trademarks are also used to distinguish an entity’s products and services from another[ CITATION Dav08 \l 1033 ].
Legally, the owner of a registered trade mark may sue for trade mark infringement if through evidence he may be able to prove that the same occurred[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ].
A trade mark may be viewed in two categories; the individual products category and the general company’s trade mark. The individual products trade mark is the trade mark used to identify a single product from the list of products that the company deals in[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ].
For instance, their case against Mr. Mouammar Abou Hamya who was claimed to have stolen stole P & G’s trademark of ARIEL in Lebanon. Mr. Mouammar Abou Hamya branded his product to be ‘NEW ARIEL’ while Procter and Gamble Company branded their products of the same use as ‘ARIEL’. The company sued Mr. Mouammar Abou Hamya and the courts ruled in the favor of the company bearing that Mr. Mouammar Abou Hamya had stolen the company’s trade mark and therefore was held liable[ CITATION Gor05 \l 1033 ].
The other type of trade is the trade mark that is used by the company to identify its products and services. This can be in the form of logo or some wordings. It is however important to note that this can be used by a competitor to outdo the organization or business entity out of business[ CITATION Rob03 \l 1033 ]. Procter and Gamble has been a victim and has been forced to change their company trademarks from time to time. It is important for one to be careful when coming up with a trademark[ CITATION Rya08 \l 1033 ].
For instance, Procter and Gamble Company have had a lot of defamation in regard to the various trademarks they adopted. It was rumored that their trademark was satanic. Their trademark represented a man (god) facing thirteen stars[ CITATION Dou08 \l 1033 ]. This rumor were further flamed by the idea/ thought that the Procter and Gamble president once said in a famous radio talk show that he paid some of his profits to the church of Satan. When he was asked about whether his statement would be detrimental to the company’s image considering that about ¾ of the US adults are Christian, he responded that Christians were very few in the US to make any change in the sales of the company[ CITATION Mar06 \l 1033 ]. This illustration is just an example of how ones trade mark can influence ones sales negatively in the market. Such remarks would pose the Christians against the products of the company reducing their sales[ CITATION Bru02 \l 1033 ].
Procter and Gamble Company devised a way of gaining from this venture by selling out their trade mark rights in a system they called “connect and develop”. This is where they sell their trademarks rights to any individual or organization which wishes to use the same trade mark. This ensures that the company can as well gain from their trade mark as well as name their products and use the same in promoting their products[ CITATION Gor05 \l 1033 ].
Designs
The CEO of Procter and Gamble, A.G. Lafley, believes a lot in design. He believes in design so much that he has opted to consider is it a cornerstone for the company. Having led the Asia branch of Procter and Gamble from Japan, A.G. Lafley, believes that the best lesson he learnt in Japan was that design is one of the most important aspects of the company than any other aspect[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ]. This has therefore prompted the CEO to embark on a project to produce the best designs there an ever be in whichever products they come up with. Procter and Gamble views their competitors to have not concentrated much on designing their products, a fact which thrust Procter and Gamble to the fore[ CITATION Rob03 \l 1033 ].
A.G. Lafley views design not only from the aspect of beauty but also from the aspect of consumer and household care which where products are to a large extent “under designed”.
This gives the products of an and Gamble the fore insofar as beauty and aesthesia is concerned about products. Human beings are generally attracted to that which they deem beautiful especially when it is of the same price and quality with another product. Procter and Gamble’s president seems to have known this and is embarking on a campaign to ensure it is to their company’s advantage[ CITATION Rya08 \l 1033 ].
The design department has been on the focus as to whether the design they are coming up with are up to the expected standards. Good designs have enabled Procter and Gamble to procure beneficial deals with other companies which helps in the promotion of their products worldwide. Creativity has since been their motto and their rail of travel[ CITATION Dou08 \l 1033 ]. The departments associated with design have been forced to only employ very competent individuals in designing to competent and win int the now very competitive aspects for companies. When branding, the department usually collaborate with teams that are multi-functional to work on brands and products for both the future and business-building programs that are current. The primary responsibility of the design department is to create innovative packaging, products and visual identity for the products. This ensures that the designs that are used by the company and are therefore Intellectual properties of the company[ CITATION Dav08 \l 1033 ].
P &G patent and Copyright
Procter and gamble is responsible for the marketing and production of over 300 brands all over the world. There hence arises a need for the licensing of trademarks in line with the laws of the land in which there products are in circulation as well as patent laws[ CITATION Bru02 \l 1033 ]. For the success of the cooperation, teams of advocates are crucial to ensure that patent rights are protected and not stole by anyone. Procter and gamble as a multinational cooperation is well aware of this fact and has made an effort to deploy lawyers in its various branches[ CITATION Rya08 \l 1033 ].
The main task of the advocates is to ensure that the cooperation does not violate the laws of the land with regards to patent issues. The division of lawyers is also tasked with the responsibility of ensuring that the rights of ownership of Procter and gamble in relation to their products as well as ideas are not stolen by anyone or used without authorization that is issued in the form of licenses. Authorization through licensing is made possible through the cooperation’s licensing portfolio which allows other organizations to use their innovations upon being licensed by the cooperation[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ].
Procter and gamble has in turn be able to device means and ways on how they can be able to counter the theft of their ideas by other cooperation’s. Spying on other companies in a bid to shut down and retrieve the patent of their products from those using them unlawfully is one of the strategies deployed to counter patent theft. The cooperation has also not been hesitant in forwarding spotted organization’s and companies to court in the event they are caught using or manufacturing Procter and gamble products[ CITATION Dou08 \l 1033 ]. The teams of advocates have proved to be quite handy in as far as handling court issues is concerned. Their skill as well as adequate experience has enabled the cooperation win numerous cases and secure their patents from companies, organization’s and institutions that were caught using or engaging in the manufacture of their products[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ].
A case in point is the patent infringement by paragon trade brands that eventually lost in court to Procter and gamble who claimed that paragon had infringed their patents right by using their label. They claimed that, paragon trade brand had used their leg-cuffs label on their manufactured disposable diapers[ CITATION Dou08 \l 1033 ]. The judge found the claims to be enforceable as well as valid and passed a ruling against paragon. On the other hand paragon’s claims were found to be quite invalid, lacking in merit and unenforceable. He even directed that paragon pay about $170 million for damages, which was awarded to Procter and gamble at the beginning of the year. All this is attributed to the competent and highly skilled advocates who are constantly equipped with the right litigations needed to secure the cooperation’s victory in cases involving patent issues[ CITATION Bru02 \l 1033 ].
Procter and gamble is keen to accord respect to the patent rights of other companies and expects other companies to reciprocate. P & G emphasis that it will not hesitate to process and investigate alleged infringement into their patent rights in accordance with the Digital Millennium copyright act and many other intellectual property laws that are inexistence[ CITATION Dou08 \l 1033 ]. In the event that infringement is alleged the cooperation has proved to be committed in protecting its intellectual property as exhibited by its swift response to patent infringement issues. They promptly act to disable any access to materials that are found to be infringing or are the subject to the infringement activity so as to prevent the unauthorized users of their product from profiting from it[ CITATION Gor05 \l 1033 ].
The connect + develop portfolio strategy
The cooperation has also been in a position to make its patent portfolio public. Through this they are in a position to share ideas as well as innovations amongst other cooperation companies and organization’s in the different industries where its products are in circulation[ CITATION Rob03 \l 1033 ]. The technique has managed to even facilitate sharing of innovations between the cooperation and its numerous competitors. The opening of the cooperation’s intellectual property to the public has been dubbed as connect + develop innovation strategy which has been credited for increase in innovation, revenue as well as improved generation with regards to new products. It was upon the discovery by the cooperation itself that the in-house innovation model was not in a position to match the changing technology, that connect + develop model was introduced[ CITATION Rob03 \l 1033 ].
The model is majorly concerned with the opening up of portfolios to partners as well as competitors. It thus positions the cooperation at an advantageous point in the industry. The strategy allows Procter and gamble to identify and secure technology from any place and for the cooperation’s’ innovations to be in turn sold to the places where they are need[ CITATION Bru02 \l 1033 ]. Through the selling of their innovations via licenses the cooperation’s is able to earn revenue which indirectly boosts its stability in the industry.
Trade secrets
Procter and gamble has also been keen on securing their trade secrets so that they do not leak to the world and put them at a disadvantage in the industry. The leaking of trade secrets, of the cooperation means that, their confidential information with regards to marketing strategies and other entrepreneur issues are made known to their competitors[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ]. This might have adverse effects to the cooperation since their competitors might decide to use the leaked trade information and woe clients as well as investors to their side at the expense of the multinational cooperation. This leads to a decrease in the revenues earned as well as a decrease in investor confidence, since their competitors who have acquired and implemented the leaked trade information sometimes before the originators are better placed in the market[ CITATION Rya08 \l 1033 ].
Conclusion
Concisely Procter and gamble is committed towards ensuring that their patent, trademarks, copyright, as well as designs are protected from being stolen by other companies or enterprises in the industries[ CITATION Dav08 \l 1033 ]. This is exhibited by their investment in intellectual property protection through a team of advocates who work for different divisions of the cooperation. The highly skilled and experienced team of advocates ensures that the multinational cooperation is in line with the laws of the land in as far as ownership and security of intellectual property is concerned[ CITATION Dav08 \l 1033 ].
Through the opening of their portfolios to both their partners and competitors, the cooperation has been able to use innovations by other companies and at the same time license its inventions for use by other companies at a fee[ CITATION Mar06 \l 1033 ]. They hence are able to source revenue from this strategy.
Safeguarding their trademarks and designs from infringement as also been crucial to the cooperation. Despite contradictions and numerous critics of their trademarks and design the cooperation has managed to maximize on the uniqueness of their designs and trademarks to woe consumers to their side[ CITATION Bru02 \l 1033 ]. The cooperation is devoted in the beatification of their products to capitalize on consumer aesthetics. A given consumer is likely to opt for a product that is beautifully designed as opposed to that whose design is poor even though the products are the same. This has brought many profits to the cooperation since most companies in the industry give little or no consideration to the design of their products[ CITATION Lan02 \l 1033 ].
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