Another benefit of patents is that they are public documents and promote the sharing of knowledge. You should consider how important this is if your products are books, maps, music, sculptures, paintings, photographs, films, and computer programs. Registering your trade-mark gives you exclusive rights to words, symbols and designs which distinguish your product or service from those of someone else. Make sure that no one already holds rights to a trade-mark you may want to use. An industrial design registration protects the original design, including the shape, configuration, pattern and ornament of a finished article.
Jewelry is an example of an industrial design.
An integrated circuit topography registration provides protection for an original circuit design, like micro-chips. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency administers the process which confers exclusive rights to varieties of plant species. Within Industry Canada, the Government of Canada has dedicated specific resources to assist innovators, researchers and entrepreneurs in protecting their intellectual property. CIPO also maintains extensive databases on registered intellectual property rights containing important business information. These databases provide a valuable resource for the sharing and shaping of innovative ideas.