Intellectual property refers to commercially valuable products of the human intellect, including things like copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets. There are two major categories of intellectual property: hard intellectual property, which provides exclusivity even if others independently develop the same innovation, and soft intellectual property, which does not preclude independent creation by third parties. In a hypothetical scenario involving someone sending a letter, the letter itself would be considered the sender's intellectual property, while the physical paper and envelope would be transferred as personal property to the recipient. Intellectual property is an important concept because it determines who holds proprietary rights over innovations and creative works.

1. Intellectual Property in
2017
By Robert Rankin

2. What is “Intellectual Property”?
• Black’s Law Dictionary defines Intellectual Property as,
• “1. A category of intangible rights protecting commercially valuable
products of the human intellect The category comprises primarily
trademark, copyright, and patent rights, but also includes trade-secret
rights, publicity rights, moral rights, and rights against unfair competition.
2. A commercially valuable product of the human intellect, in a concrete or
abstract form, such as a copyrightable work, a protectable trademark, a
patentable invention, or a trade secret. ---Abbr. IP.” (Black’s 10th ed., 2014)

3. IP Law’s TWO Major Categories
• I. Hard Intellectual Property
• Intellectual property, such as a patent, that excludes others from using the
invention without the holder’s consent even if others find the innovation
independently.
• Example: Thomas Edison’s Patent on the “Electric lamp” USPTO: US223898 A
• II. Soft Intellectual Property
• Intellectual property, such as a copyright, that does not preclude
independent creation by third parties.
• Example: The Starbucks logo; The Target logo; the Wal-Mart logo

4. An Excerpt from the Experts
• “While there is a close relationship between intanglible property
and the tangible objects in which they are embodied, intellectual
property rights are distinct and separate from property rights in
tangible goods. For example, when a person posts a letter to
someone, the personal property in the ink and parchment is
transferred to the recipient. . . . [T]he sender (as author)retains
intellectual property rights in the letter.” –Lionel Bently & Brad
Sherman, Intellectual Property Law 1-2 (2001).

5. Hypothetical
• Person A decides to send a letter or parcel to Person B.
• Questions for consideration:
• What is the letter/parcel considered, legally?
• Who has rights when it comes to the shipment?
• Why is intellectual property important in this scenario?
• The Breakdown:
• If a person A sends a letter to person B, the only physical property exchanged-otherwise
known as a transaction- is the ink, paper, and envelope. In reality, the letter is a gift
transaction. All other contents in the letter are person A’s intellectual property. If there is
a design or schematic for a renewable biofuel usable in personal or commercial
automobiles, person A is the proprietor of that design.

6. Proprietary Technology (1965)
• “A body of knowledge or know-how that is owned or controlled by
a person whose authorization is required before any other party
may use that know-how or knowledge for commercial purposes.
Cf. TRADE SECRET” (Black’s 10th ed. 2014)

7. Proprietary Software (1969)
• “Software that cannot be used, redistributed, or modified without
permission.”
• “Proprietary software is usu. Sold for profit, sonsists only of machine-
readable code, and carries a limited license that restricts copying,
modification, and redistribution. A user may usu. Make a backup copy for
personal use, but if the software is sold or given away, any backup copies
must be passed on to the new user or destroyed. Cf. FREEWARE;
SHAREWARE; SEMI-FREE SOFTWARE” (Black’s 10th ed. 2014)

8. Freeware (ca.1983)
• “Software, esp. based on open-source code, that is made
generally avaoilable with express or implicit permission for anyone
to use, copy, modify, and distribute for any purpose, including
financial gain.”
• “The term “free” refers to usage rights rather than price − a distinction
important in two respects.
• “First, a user may purchase the initial copy of freeware.”
• Second, software available at no cost may not include permission for the
software’s user to copy, modify, or give away the software. − Also termed free
software. Cf. PROPRIETARY SOFTWARE”

9. So What IS Software?
• “1. The sequence of instructions by which a computer accepts and
translates input symbols, executes actions, and outputs symbols such as
numbers, characters in an e-mail message, pictures in a text message,
the music played on a mobile device, or GPS coordinates. 2. More
broadly, anything that can be stored electronically. CF. HARDWARE”
• “Computer software is a set of instructions that runs on a computer. It does not
consist solely of programming language. Rather, from a technical perspectiove,
software is defined as a program and all of the associated information and materials
needed to support its installation, operation, repair, and enhancement. It also
includes written programs, procedures, rules and associated documentation
pertaining to the operation of a computer system, which are stored on digital
medium/ Indeed, because computer software instructs a computer how to perform
actions, in the boadest sense, it includes everything that is not hardware. Put
another way, computers are, in effect, incomplete machines when manufactured
and acquire functionality only after being coupled with software.” Daniel B. Garries
& Francie M. Allegra, Plugged In: Guidebook to Software and the Law § 2.1, at 45-46
(2013).