Remember, every country has its own set of intellectual property (IP) laws. If you're serious about doing business abroad, then do your research and make sure that your IP is protected in that country.

So what exactly is intellectual property? The term refers broadly to creations of the human mind. Intellectual property rights protect the interests of creators by giving them property rights over their creations.

In general, there are two types of IP: industrial property (patents, trademarks, industrial designs, etc.) and copyright (novels, poems, films, musical works, paintings, photographs, etc.).

In Canada, this can be broken down further into six major categories: patents, trademarks, copyrights, industrial designs, integrated circuit topographies, and plant breeders