P▲

Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property

An international treaty on intellectual property signed by some 90 nations, including the United States.

Patent

A government grant giving the right to the patent holder for a limited period of time to exclude others from making, using or selling an invention.

Patent Cooperation Treaty

An international treaty providing for standardized filing procedures for foreign patents in the countries that have signed the treaty.

Patent examiner

An official with technical expertise charged with the task of classifying a patent or an application, or of determining whether a patent application fulfills the requirements for a grant of patent.

Patent Office

The authority within a government granting authority rights to an inventor for a limited period of time and a disseminator of patent information.

Patent Office Action

An official written communication by a Patent Office on the merits of an application.

Performers and producers rights

A term used to indicate rights of performers and sound recording producers to be remunerated when their performances and sound recordings are performed publicly or broadcast.

Performing Rights Society

An organization that administers rights to perform musical works on behalf of composers, lyricists, songwriters and music publishers.

Plagiarism

Using the work (or part of it) of another person and claiming it as your own.

Posthumous work

A work that is published for the first time (or, for certain types of works, published, performed or delivered in public for the first time) after the author's death.

Preferred Embodiment

An explanation, in a patent application, of the most appropriate and useful practical applications of an invention.

Prior art

The body of documents evidencing the prior work of others including catalogues, manuals and other publications throughout the world relevant to the subject matter of the invention.

Private copying

Copying of pre-recorded musical works, performers' performances and sound recordings into a blank medium, such as audio tape or cassette, for personal use.

Prosecution

All the steps involved in completing a patent application.

Proprietor

The proprietor of a design is the owner of the design. This can be the person who created it or who paid to have it created or who bought the design rights from the original owner.

Publication

Making copies of a work available to the public. The construction of an architectural work and the incorporation of an artistic work into an architectural work are considered publication.

Place of origin

A word or depiction that designates the origin of a product or service and that therefore may not be registered as a trademark.

Preliminary search

The search of US Trademark Office records that one should undertake before submitting an application for trademark registration. The search may turn up conflicting trademarks and show that the application process would be in vain.

Prohibited marks

Marks that are specifically prohibited from use by statute.

Protected geographical indication

A geographical indication is an indication that identifies a wine or spirit as originating from a territory where a quality, reputation or other characteristics of the wine or spirit are essentially attributable to its geographical origin.