The term “property” refers to ownership or appropriation of an object by an individual to the exclusion of rest of society. This right, fostered and protected by law, entitles one to the exclusive use, enjoyment and disposal of the object, and others accept this and are duty bound not to interfere with this right. The concept of ownership of tangible physical assets such as land, dwellings and other goods is intricately linked to man and civilization.

Intellectual property (IP), on the other hand, refers to the intangible products of human intellect. In today’s world, due to the commercial value of the intellectual creation, it is vested with the status of property. This concept of ownership of mankind’s creations is not new. Greater awareness of its economic value has resulted in the creation and protection of IP in the form of statutes in the latter half of the present millennium. Its value and significance is enormous, especially when viewed in the context of the kaleidoscopic social, cultural and technological changes and the resultant economic development the world over. While knowledge and creativity are being recognized as the cornerstones of corporate development, effective protection and jurisprudence of IP is considered the key to nurture socio-economic progress, thus promoting national social endeavors. IP rights created and protected by statutes are meant to foster creativity by providing the necessary incentives to the creator of the IP.

IP law confers on the owner the proprietary rights over his products and authorizes him to take action against the infringement on his right. The IP, like any other property, can be assigned, mortgaged and licensed. In order to get protection, the owner has to satisfy the conditions imposed by the statutes. It has to be registered with a competent authority and protection is given for certain duration. After the expiry of the period, it becomes public property and anybody is free to use it. The modes of acquisition of IP may be by agreement or by inheritance.

IP laws are concerned with the creation, vesting and use of IP rights, and they relate to various creations including literary and artistic works, inventions, symbols, images, designs and names used in commerce. While inventions and products pertinent to industrial commerce are covered by the industrial property rights, literary and other artistic creations (such as literature, music, cinema and other visual arts, sculpture, architectural designs) come under copyright protection.