In my own non-technical terms...Intellectual property can be anything from poems, songs, movies, etc. and usually the person that created the work has sole rights for any changes to their work or money making opportunities (unless they give up the rights or it is owned by an employer they work for).

What does it have to do with libraries? Well...it is in ALA there is a code of ethics for librarians and one is to:

"We recognize and respect intellectual property rights."

http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/statementspols/codeofethics/codeethics.htm

This could mean not allowing someone to copy a whole book and sell it or making illegal back up copies for the library, etc.

The owner of the copyright receives protections under the law in the form of being able to sue someone for infringing on their rights (for example, a library, internet service provider, or even a college could be sued for giving students access to the internet which allows them to download illegal copies of songs). Again, this is simply put and I don't consider myself an expert on this, but I hope it helps.

The ALA website has some information on intellectual freedom and a little on intellectual property (http://www.ala.org/ala/washoff/woissues/copyrightb/intlcopyright/wipo.cfm), although it doesn't define the basics, it may help to get you acquainted with a librarian perspective. You can also find information on copyright (which ties into intellectual property) at http://www.copyright.gov/ .

Recommended Reading:

• Copyright and the Perils of Interlibrary Loan by Michele Martin