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Intellectual property is a "difficult area" that is often seen as "expensive and complicated" for small businesses to understand, according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).
Company directors of new business start-ups especially find it hard to prioritise company legislation such copyright and patenting, due to restricted time and money.
Intellectual property laws, which confer exclusive rights related to the particular form in which ideas are expressed, are designed to protect different types of subject matter - from creative works like books to new inventions.
While "traditional" businesses may not initially have intellectual issues at the top of their minds, later on when they expand into different areas, these issues come to the fore.
Businesses that are online should be particularly aware of copyright and patenting issues, the FSB warned. The internet offers a much wider audience which may be from much further a field, making internet businesses more vulnerable to intellectual theft.
Simon Briault, spokesperson for the FSB, said: "Intellectual property by its very nature is pretty elusive and difficult to pin down and for small business owners who are just starting out, its often hard to do that because theyre just concerned about their business.
"But you do have to be careful about your intellectual property and make sure you look after it."
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