In Spain and other Spanish-speaking jurisdictions a distinction is made between propiedad intelectual, which principally refers to “copyright” (derechos de autor) and propiedad industrial, which includes trademarks (marcas), tradenames (nombres comerciales), patents (patentes), utility models (modelos de utilidad), industrial models and designs (modelos y diseños industriales), and the protection of domain names, semiconductor chip masks and plant varieties (protección de nombres de dominio, topografías de productos semiconductores y obtenciones vegetales), etc.

This division is underscored by the fact that in Spain propiedad intelectual and propiedad industrial are protected under totally separate laws: on the one hand, the “Consolidated Text of the Copyright Act” (Texto Refundido de la Ley de Propiedad Intelectual); and on the other, the “Trademark Act” (Ley de Marcas), “Patent Act” (Ley de Patentes), and additional legislation protecting other modes of industrial property.

Moreover, different entities handle the registration of Spanish intellectual and industrial property. The Central and Regional Copyright Registers (Registro General y Registros Territoriales de la Propiedad Intelectual) are maintained and supervised by the Ministerio de Cultura y Deporte, while industrial property rights are protected through registration at the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (Oficina Española de Patentes y Marcas, OEPM), a division of the Ministerio de Industria, Comercio y Turismo. And, traditionally, propiedad intelectual is an aspect of property law covered in the Código Civil, while propiedad industrial was initially governed under the Código de Comercio and is considered a part of Derecho mercantil. Today, propiedad intelectual is still studied in Spanish law schools as a part of Civil Law. But, since these are such closely related disciplines, Manuales de Derecho mercantil now generally include both.

In contrast to the above, in English “intellectual property” is a broad term that encompases both the Spanish propiedad intelectual and propiedad industrial. And, in addition to copyright, trademarks, patents, etc., intellectual property textbooks used in US law schools often include related disciplines such as unfair competition (competencia desleal), trade secrets (secretos industriales), false advertising (publicidad engañosa) and the protection of publicity rights (derechos de imagen).