Pretty sure I will be asking a lawyer, but I want to learn more words and concepts first.
A possible new job wants to own any intellectual property I create and wants me to declare anything I want to keep as my own. This seems normal in my industry as they will be paying me to do some thinking.
Issue is that I have a number of ideas I have been developing. I am going to float some of them as products in my own time, though this may be years from now. Most of these are outside the current market for the company as far as I know.
How is this typically handled? I presume I don’t need to have copyrights or trademarks prior and can just list tentative titles.
I am also a little unclear on the spread between “intellectual property” and “an idea I am playing with”.
Thoughts? Concepts to investigate?
Edit: I did Internet search this, but I have not found working keywords.
If there are any ideas you want to make sure you protect upfront, write them down & mail them to yourself.
Don’t open it when it comes back & you’ll have postmarked proof the idea was yours on the day you mailed the letter.
That’s what they taught us film school in the early 2000’s anyways.
You have to send it certified mail. Unopened, the document is considered as old as the postmarking. Often called a poor man’s copyright.