Intellectual property

For a creator, intellectual property covers several separate things that get lumped together. Copyright protects the videos, scripts, music and images you made, and it exists automatically the moment the work is recorded. Trademarks protect the names and logos identifying you in the market, and they need registering to be worth much. Design rights and contractual rights over commissioned footage sit alongside both. Two practical points. Employment and freelance contracts decide who owns what, so check whether your editor's contract assigns their work to you. And your channel name is a brand asset, which makes somebody else registering it as a trademark a real and recurring risk.