The protection of intellectual property in enterprises of the Małopolska Region

Abstract

Firms seeking to develop must work on their own innovative potential. In innovation activities this potential includes the innovative capabilities used in the creation, implementation and management of innovation. As one of the most important factors affecting competitiveness and enterprise development is knowledge, which, adequately targeted, is the basis for the creation of innovation. The purpose of this article is to analyze and assess the level of the use of tools for the protection of intellectual property associated with the process of the creation and implementation of innovations in enterprises of Tarnów and Malopolska Region.

The first part of the article covers the presentation and division of basic tools used by businesses to protect knowledge as the most important resource used to create innovation. The second part of the article shows the results of empirical studies involving the presentation of the level of the use of tools to secure the value from innovation by the firms of the Malopolska Region, in the context of the type of activity. On the basis of the research it can be concluded that businesses have the ability to innovate, but the scale of operations aimed at the retention of the value created as a result of innovation in the analyzed enterprices is at a low level.