(cont'd from yesterday's post)
Before the New Zealand teenager, Ayla, put her "kindling cracker" into production and started selling it, she applied for a patent from her government.
Her idea and invention is her "intellectual property" (IP), and a patent gives her the rights to the idea for a certain length of time. It ensures that, for that time period, she is entitled to receive the rewards of bringing it to market. Legally, no one can steal it from her and claim that the idea is their own.
Besides the idea and product itself, she has a patent on the brand name that identifies it. As her company produces and sells it to customers, her brand will earn a reputation. Her company is entitled to that reputation because it has come to mean something.
from WIPO, the World Intellectual Property Organization
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