The document discusses intellectual property rights including copyright, patents, trademarks, industrial design, and trade secrets. It provides definitions and key aspects of each type of intellectual property. Copyright is the sole right to publish works. Patents give exclusive rights over inventions. Trademarks distinguish goods/services. Industrial design covers product design. Trade secrets are confidential business information. Intellectual property is protected under domestic laws and international agreements.

1. NMAIST
TOPIC 5: IP RIGHTS
To be covered under this topic:
• introduction, history and definition of concepts
• Copyright, patents, trade and service marks, industrial design
and trade secrets
• the existing legal framework on protection of IP
• international aspects of IP
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2. Intellectuall property
and intellectual property
law defined
Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the
mind for which a set of exclusive rights are
recognized. For each set of exclusive rights
there is a corresponding field of law –
intellectual property law.
Under intellectual property law, owners are granted
certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible
assets, such as musical, literary, and artistic
works; discoveries and inventions; and words,
phrases, symbols, and designs.
Common types of intellectual property rights and
respective laws include:
• Copyrights – Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act,
• Trademarks – Trade and Service Marks Act,
• Patents – Patents Registration Act,
• Industrial design rights and
• Trade secrets.
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3. Copyright defined
• the sole legal right to print, publish, perform, film or record a
literary or artistic or musical work
• A copyright is an intangible right granted by law to an author
or originator of certain literary or artistic productions. The
author or originator is granted, for a limited period, the
exclusive privilege to make copies of the same for
publication and sale. Such exclusive right may also be
transferred to another person.
• A copyright is a legal device that gives the creator of a
literary, artistic, musical, or other creative work the sole right
to publish and sell that work.
• Copyright owners have the right to control the reproduction
of their work, including the right to receive payment for that
reproduction. Authors of original literary and artistic works
shall be entitled to copyright protection for their works under
the Copyright law, by the sole fact of the creation of such
works
• An author may grant or sell those rights to others, including
publishers or recording companies. Violation of a copyright
is called an infringement.
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4. Copyright defined
(contd)
Copyright is distinct from other forms of creator protection such
as patents, which give inventors exclusive rights over use of
their inventions, and trademarks, which are legally protected
words or symbols or certain other distinguishing features that
represent products or services. Similarly, whereas a patent
protects the application of an idea, and a trademark protects a
device that indicates the provider of particular services or
goods, copyright protects the expression of an idea. Whereas
the operative notion in patents is novelty, so that a patent
represents some invention that is new and has never been
made before, the basic concept behind copyright is
originality, so that a copyright represents something that has
originated from a particular author and not from another.
Copyrights, patents, and trademarks are all examples of what
is known in the law as intellectual property.
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5. Patent defined
The term patent usually refers to an exclusive
right granted to anyone who invents any new,
useful, and non-obvious process, machine,
article of manufacture, or composition of
matter, or any new and useful improvement
thereof, and claims that right in a formal patent
application.
A patent is not a right to practice or use the
invention. Rather, a patent provides the right
to exclude others from making, using, selling,
offering for sale, or importing the patented
invention for the term of the patent, which, in
Tanzania is ten (10) years from the filing date
subject to the payment of maintenance fees.
This term may be extended by five (5) years
upon application for extension. A patent is, in
effect, a limited property right that the
government offers to inventors in exchange
for their agreement to share the details of their
inventions with the public. Like any other
property right, it may be sold, licensed,
mortgaged, assigned or transferred, given
away, or simply abandoned. 5

6. Trademark or service
mark defined
A trademark or service-mark is
• A distinctive name, symbol, motto, or design that
legally identifies a company or its products and
services, and usually prevents others from using
identical or similar marks.
• symbol, word, phrase, logo, or combination of
these that legally distinguishes one company's
product from any others. Any infringement on a
trademark is illegal and therefore grounds for the
company owning the trademark to sue the
infringing party.
• According to the Trade and Service Marks Act,
Cap. ….."trade or service mark" means any visible
sign used or proposed to be used upon, in
connection with or in relation to goods or services
for the purpose of distinguishing in the course of
trade or business the goods or services of a person
from those of another;
• Coca cola and Pepsi cola each has a trade mark.
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7. Salient features in
copyright, patent and
trade/service mark
Copyrigh Patent Trade/ser
t vice
mark
Basic notion Originality Novelty (a Distinguishi
(something new ng feature
that has invention (visible sign
originated never made that
from a before) distinguishes
particular one product
author and from
not another) another)
What is The The Visible sign
protected expression application or symbol or
of an idea of an idea certain
distinguishin
g feature
Rights given Gives author Gives Gives owner
a right to investor of
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publish exclusive distinguishin
his/her work rights over g feature a

8. Industrial design
defined
• To design means to make a drawing or plan of
something that will be made or built
• Creation and development of concepts and
specifications aimed at optimizing the functions, value,
and appearance of products, structures, and systems.
• Industrial design (ID) is the professional service of
creating and developing concepts and specifications
that optimize the function, value and appearance of
products and systems for the mutual benefit of both
user and manufacturer.
• Industrial designers develop these concepts and
specifications through collection, analysis and
synthesis of data guided by the special requirements of
the client or manufacturer. They are trained to prepare
clear and concise recommendations through drawings,
models and verbal descriptions.
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9. Industrial design
defined (contd)
• Industrial designers, as professionals, are guided by
their awareness of obligations to fulfill contractual
responsibilities to clients, to protect the public safety
and well-being, to respect the environment and to
observe ethical business practice.
• The Tanzania Engineering and Manufacturing Design
Organisation Act Cap. 176 establishes the Tanzania
Engineering and Manufacturing Design Organisation
and provides for the functions and powers of the
Organisation in relation to the promotion of
engineering, designing, manufacturing and machinery
adaptation.
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10. Industrial design (contd)
4. Functions of the Organisation
(1) The functions of the Organisation shall be–
(a) to design and promote the designing of products and
processes for Tanzanian industry in accordance with national
industrial development policy;
(b) to adapt foreign designs of machinery and equipment
to suit local conditions of manufacture, use and maintenance;
(c) to manufacture and develop prototypes and spares
based on designs produced by the Organisation as well as
those which may be brought to the Organisation;
(d) to design tools, dies, jigs and fixtures required by the
industrial sector;
(e) to provide technical extension services including
training aimed at increasing the skills of technical manpower
at all levels and establishment in the country and enabling
industry to produce the products or processes for mass
marketing;
(f) either alone or in co-operation with other bodies, to
assist the industrial sector in solving production bottlenecks
for the purposes of increasing productivity, capacity
utilisation and quality of products;
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11. Industrial design (contd)
Functions of the organization (contd)
(g) to provide relevant information and advice to the industrial
sector relating to production, purchase and supply, quality
control, marketing and other related areas;
(h) to identify and conduct short courses in so far as it is within
the competence and capacity of the Organisation, and to co-
operate with other institutions in the conduct of such courses;
(iv)to give on the job training to engineers in designing,
production engineering, foundry technology, metrology and
metallurgy;
(j) to conduct a systematic on the job training, in tools, dies,
presswork, specialised welding, design, draughtsmanship,
mechanical and structural machinery maintenance and, for
industrial electricians and electronic technicians;
(k) to offer consultancy services on material testing, met design
and other technical undertakings;
(l) to act as the national link with other international institutions
engaged in activities related to the functions of the
Organisation;
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12. Industrial design (contd)
(a) to do such things incidental or conducive to the fulfilment of
the objectives of the Organisation as the Board may decide.
(2) In particular, but without prejudice to the generality of
subsection (1), the Organisation shall–
(a) undertake or assist the establishment, equipment and
management of any centre or design office within Tanzania
for the performance of any of its functions;
(b) promote the national capability for, and carry out
engineering designing manufacturing and machinery
adaptation;
(c) provide to the industrial sector practical technical
services by equipping itself with the necessary skilled
manpower and physical facilities in the form of workshops,
laboratories, design offices, and ancillary services.
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13. Trade secret defined
• Trade secrets are information that companies keep
secret to give them an advantage over their
competitors. The formula for Coca-Cola is the most
famous trade secret. Trade secrets are not protected by
intellectual property law the same way that trademarks
or patents are. Protection for trade secrets is done by
non-disclosure, the information must be kept
confidential.
• Companies often use non-disclosure agreements
(NDA) to keep their trade secrets safe. Employees
often have to sign a non-disclosure agreement as part
of their employment commitments.
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14. Legal framework for
protection of intellectual
property
• Copyright is protected under the Copyright and
Neighbouring Rights Act
• Patents are protected under the Patents Act
• Trade and service marks are protected under the Trade
and Service Marks Act
• Industrial design – No specific
• Trade secrets – contract law
There are also international legal instruments that protect
intellectual property rights. These include:
 The Berne Convention
 Paris Convention
 The Rome Convention
 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual
Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement)
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