Your institution will be the owner of information or data, e.g., in the form of contact databases, research reports, training materials, publications, consulting methodologies and questionnaires. It is important to protect this work from being commercially used by other institutions, especially by your competitors.

The World Intellectual Property Organization, which provides extensive information on intellectual property, copyrights and trade marks, defines that:

"... the creator of works (= expressed content) and their heirs have certain basic rights. They hold the right to use or authorize others to use the work on agreed terms. The creator can prohibit or authorize:

• its reproduction, as in publications, on web sites, etc.
• its public performance, as in seminars and workshops
• recordings of it, in the form of CD-ROMs, videotapes, etc.
• its translation into other languages or its adaptation
• its broadcasting, by radio, cable or satellite "

Copyright in itself does not depend on any official procedures. A created work is considered protected by copyright as soon as it exists.