By: Michael J Foycik Jr.
The author is a patent attorney with over 28 years experience in patents and trademarks. For further information, please email at IP1lwyr@gmail.com, or call at 877-654-3336.
When – and why - do you need a patent?
You need a patent:
> If you wish to stop others from copying your invention.
> If you wish to protect yourself from competitors who may copy your invention and then try to patent it themselves.
> If your product is in stores and you are challenged by a competitor who claims they have patent rights of their own.
> If having a unique new product would allow you to set a much higher selling price.
> If it is important to impress potential investors, customers or retailers.
> if you want to stop illegal copies of your products from entering the U.S.
> If you hope to sell your business for a profit. Patent rights are often the most important asset of a successful business.
> If you hope to license your patented product to others.
And, there may be other reasons, in particular cases, for having a patent.
And, there's more! A patent is based on a patent application. Even before a patent application issues as a patent, the pending patent application can also give important benefits. These are as follows.
You need a pending patent application:
> If you wish to discourage competitors from copying your invention. Those competitors may not wish to invest in manufacturing and marketing a competing product, because your pending patent application could issue at any moment as a granted patent. That uncertainty itself thus helps to protect the invention.
> If you wish to protect yourself from competitors who may copy your invention and then try to patent it themselves. Even if the patent application never issues as a patent, it is a permanent record of your prior inventorship. The published patent application, even if it never issues as a patent, might be used as prior art against later applicants.
> If having a unique new product would allow you to set a much higher selling price. Customers and retailers know that “patent pending” means something, and it suggests that your product or service is new and unique. It can be a good selling point in some cases.
Read more >> http://internationalpatentservice.com/do-i-need-a-patent.html
