Protect your business
Keep your assets and ideas safe.
Keep your investment safe by getting the right insurance and protecting your intellectual property.
Insurance
Make sure you review the insurance needs for your business. Some types of insurance are compulsory.
You should get professional advice about your individual requirements.
Read more about insurance on the Australian Government's Business website.
Workers' compensation insurance
Any business that employs or hires workers in the Northern Territory must have workers' compensation insurance.
Find out more on the NT WorkSafe website.
Intellectual property
Your business name, an idea or things you create form part of your business' intellectual property (IP).
Protecting your IP can be important for your business. Its helps you maintain a unique identity.
There are different ways you can protect your IP. Read below to find out more.
Trade marks
Registering your business name doesn't protect your brand. To protect a logo or brand, you must trade mark it.
There are rules about what you can and can't trade mark. You can't:
- be too similar to other trade marks in your industry
- trade mark product design - there is a different process for design IP
- trade mark your business name.
Read more on the Australian Government's IP Australia website.
You should consider registering your business name and domain name to protect these assets.
Search for existing trade marks using the Australian Government's Australian Trade Mark Search.
Check to see if your business name has been trade marked before you register it.
Patents
A patent gives you the exclusive right to commercialise something that you have invented.
Standard patents last for 20 years.
Getting a patent can be expensive and you may need legal help. You can research the process on the Australian Government's IP Australia website.
Design
You can register a design to protect the appearance of a product.
To get design rights, you must register the design and then get it certified. You can do this on the Australian Government's IP Australia website.
Copyright
Copyright protects original creative work like books, music, art and videos.
You don't need to register for copyright as it applies automatically.
To use someone's copyrighted work, you must check the permissions and rights required.
You will need a licence if you plan to play copyrighted music. Apply on the OneMusic Australia website.