A patent is a form of intellectual property (IP) protection that is designed to protect inventions; creative works (such as books and musical recordings) are protected by copyright. U.S. patents protect inventors for 20 years, during which time the holder—not necessarily the same person as the inventor—can exclude others from making use of the technology that the protects. Patent applications are subject to an examination, in which examiners attempt to determine whether the invention is truly novel (that is, whether it is an attempt to existing technology, called prior art) and whether the invention’s novelty if it exists, is sufficiently significant to warrant the patent’s issuance. See copyright, business process patent, patentable subject matter, software patent, trade secret.