The document discusses different strategies for protecting technological innovations, including patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. It explains that determining the appropriate protection strategy is complex, as protecting an innovation can encourage its adoption but also allow competitors to copy it. The key factors to consider include the appropriability of the innovation based on ease of imitation, and balancing a proprietary strategy against an open one. Mechanisms like patents, trademarks, and copyrights offer legal protections, while trade secrets rely on maintaining secrecy. The document analyzes the specific protections offered by each approach and considerations for formulating an effective strategy.