Word going around about toys

I think what I meant was the Patent and Trademark Office. Maybe it works different in the States.

Last time I copyrighted something here in Argentina, it costed the equivalent to about 10 US dollars, and it lasted about 3 years, not that much. Then I had to pay again.

If you are afraid of plagiarism, I guess the best is to save money until you can pay the copyright.

In the US, if you create something (in this case, take a photo, or create a design for a product), you own the copyright on that item, image, or design. Enforcing it, especially online, is where it gets messy and/or expensive. Are you planning to make money on this photo or the concept it represents? Are you likely to get money from whoever decides to take it? Are you ready to go to court to prove that this image and/or product is yours? If any answer is no, then applying for a patent or a copyright sounds ridiculous.

The US patent system takes years, so if you are trying to register a design, that will be time and money invested before you can show anybody here what you've done. For years, songwriters have mailed copies of their songs to themselves (lyrics & demo recorders) and keep the sealed envelope on file. The US postal mark counts as a federal timestamp, and you just keep the envelope sealed until the day comes when you need it in court. Simple, right? It's known as "the poor man's copyright." However, this has never been reported as effective in a court of law, so it's really for your own amusement more than anything. If you really have an idea you feel needs protection, you should go through the proper lengthy legal channels and be very patient.

You might also research existing patents for the same concept to see if someone already owns your idea simply by having it first. 

If we're just talking about an image that you want credit for once it's uploaded, a watermark is the strongest theft deterrent in this case; you can't stop people from downloading the image, but you can permanently alter the image before you post it so that if they like what they see, they know its origin. This is why so many of the artists and morphers in our community add a signature or URL to their work in some way. But they are sharing their work without hope of profit in those cases, so it's more about getting the credit and perhaps a few kind words from fellow perverts. I don't know that any of them plans to manufacture goods or sell their work through services, but even if they do...they still own their own work, because copyright is legally assigned at the time of creation. The minute they're done drawing, they own it. 

DeviantArt will automatically watermark images for you if you like. If the photo is something you want to sell, DA can do that too.