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Ontario Tech acknowledges the lands and people of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation.

We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

Learn more about Indigenous Education and Cultural Services

Trade secrets

Trade secrets are IP rights on confidential information which may have economical value.

In general, to qualify as a trade secret, the information must be:

  • Commercially valuable because it is secret
  • Be known only to a limited group of persons
  • Be subject to reasonable steps taken by the rightful holder of the information to keep it secret, including the use of confidentiality agreements for anyone that has access to the information

Although our IP Policy cover “trade secrets”, it is better and more accurate to use the term “confidential information”, as the reasonable steps criteria is hard to implement in an academic setting.

 

When to consider Trade Secrets?

Trade secrets are generally used to:

  • Keep IP confidential “forever”
  • Protect valuable IP that is difficult to protect by other means
  • Keep security sensitive technology from public domain

AI-based technology is difficult to patent.  Companies are increasingly turning to trade secrets to protect their AI IP.

The food industry is another market that relies heavily on trade secrets.

Example of famous trade secrets: Google search algorithm, Coca-Cola recipe, WD-40, Listerine, KFC recipe.

Here is a short video about trade secrets by the World Intellectual Property Organization: