Are you a tech company in Armenia? Let’s Talk about Intellectual Property.
You have come up with a great idea that turned into a product that turned into a company that turned into a growing business. Everything goes your way – investors love you, the customer base is growing, and the team is expanding. Then someone asks you – what IP does your company have? No, it’s not the IP address or anything of this nature. We’re talking about the intellectual property that your company owns. Are you struggling to answer this question decidedly? Then keep reading.
In a nutshell, some of the intellectual property that your company or its shareholders may own is your logo/trademark, inventions, software, and its components, literary and artistic works, and many other types of intellectual property.
Every Armenian tech company possesses some sort of intellectual property. The problem is, many don’t really know the scope of the IP that they possess, others do know about their primary product and IP associated with it but do not implement mechanisms for proper protection of such IP. We have seen and interacted with many such companies, and that experience led us to write this article to serve an eye-opening role. In the end, we want the Armenian startup ecosystem to succeed, and as much as we realize that the most important thing for a tech company is improving its product, legal and IP matters will ensure that your main goal is well-served.
We want to put this article in very simple terms to lay out what you need to understand about the IP in your company. In doing so, we don’t actually provide you with answers, we just ask the right questions. Ask yourself the questions below:
Is my company registered in Armenia or abroad (e.g. Delaware)?
Do I have employees? Do I have employment agreements with my employees? If yes, how do these agreements regulate IP matters?
Do I engage freelancers, companies, and groups of individuals under service agreements? If yes, how do these agreements regulate IP matters?
Have I registered my company’s trademark?
Do I have confidentiality obligations in my agreements with employees and counterparties?
Do I have patentable IP? If yes, have I applied for a patent registration?
Do I have a knowledge management system for intellectual property at my company?
How do I know when IP is created? Do I have a system for reporting on such matters?
There are many other questions that we will be happy to ask and discuss with you. However, we think that the questions above will be a good starting point in order to make you think about IP and what needs to be done about it at your company.
We will be happy to discuss these questions and potential answers for your company. Feel free to contact us.