How Copyright Works: What is the Difference Between Copyrights, Trademarks, and Patents?

In this video, Berklee Online course author Dr. E. Michael Harrington discusses copyrights, trademarks, and patents and how they are all different. Patents last for a shorter amount of time than copyrights, but they are very powerful. While trademarks work well, be sure to research other trademarks to make sure elements like your color scheme and logo aren’t too similar to another trademark.

About E. Michael Harrington:
Dr. E. Michael Harrington is a professor in music copyright and intellectual property matters. He has lectured at many law schools, organizations, and music conferences throughout North America, including Harvard Law, George Washington University Law, Hollywood Bar Association, Texas Bar, Minnesota Bar, Houston Law Center, Brooklyn Law, BC Law, Loyola Law, NYU, McGill, Eastman, Emory, the Experience Music Project, Future of Music Coalition, Pop Montreal, and others. He has worked as a consultant and expert witness in hundreds of music copyright matters including efforts to return "We Shall Overcome" and "This Land Is Your Land" to the public domain, and has worked with director Steven Spielberg, producer Mark Burnett, the Dixie Chicks, Steve Perry, Busta Rhymes, Samsung, Keith Urban, HBO, T-Pain, T. I., Snoop Dogg, Collin Raye, Tupac Shakur, Lady Gaga, George Clinton, Mariah Carey, and others. He sits on the editorial board of the Journal of Popular Culture, advisory board of the Future of Music Coalition and the Creators Freedom Project, and is a member of Leadership Music. Michael has been interviewed by the New York Times, CNN, Bloomberg Law, Wall Street Journal, Time, Huffington Post, Billboard, USA Today, Rolling Stone, Money Magazine, Investor's Business Daily, People Magazine, Life Magazine, and Washington Post, in addition to BRAVO, PBS, ABC News, NBC's "Today Show," the Biography Channel, NPR, CBC and others. He teaches Music Business Capstone and Music Licensing courses at Berklee Online, and is the course author and instructor for Music Business Law, part of the curriculum for Berklee Online’s Master of Art in Music Business degree.

About Berklee Online:
Berklee Online is the continuing education division of Berklee College of Music, delivering online access to Berklee's acclaimed curriculum from anywhere in the world, offering online courses, certificate programs, and degree programs. Contact an Academic Advisor today:
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Copyright Law | E. Michael Harrington | Patents | Trademarks | Music Business | Music Business Law | Berklee Online | Berklee College of Music

[johnson]

This was helpful because you gave examples too, rather than just defining each like other videos have done. My question would be can you copyright a logo and trademark it? Or if your first file to copyright a logo so you protect your art, can you later trademark it also if it has your business name in the logo?

[commercehublucknow]

Thank u sir for giving to most knowledge about intucaul properties
🙏😍😍

[FLT]

$290? That would be nice. Everything I've seen is it costs anywhere from $1, 000 to $3, 000 for an attorney.

[redpeterdragon.impressions]

I no longer care about that, I have had a few ideals and with in a year or Two I seen them done, now I always was like how? So I decided not to let it drive me insane and just post it. So I can explain to myself how you would have the same ideal.

[JaneDoeMoto]

So let's say that someone has registered Moto Madness Apparel and also owns a coffee company called High Voltage Coffee Co. If I wanted to start a coffee company called Moto Madness Coffee Co. -- could this be infringing on their trademark?

(I used fake names here to protect my idea).

[erinjohnson]

Hi there... if I created a concept book for a healing purpose, would a copyright be the best and only option? Is it unreasonable to have a way where others couldn't create something similar?

[redpeterdragon.impressions]

And you need a patent from each Nation in the world.

[lovelybluprint]

Can a Mission Statement be copyrighted ?

[abseiduk]

But isn't a 'trade mark' already a 'copyright'