BlueIron Model
Patents are Similar to Stock Market Options
Patents are an inherently risky investment and have lots of similarities to options trading. This is because they have value only when the market comes to them. At the time you purchase an option – and at the time you create a patent – you must place a bet on where the market will go.…
Read MoreHow to Find a Good Patent Attorney
How to find a good patent attorney: find two attorneys, and have each one evaluate the other attorney’s work. Here is a simple technique to find a good patent attorney: start with at least *two* candidates. Ask each attorney to give you a sample of their work, and take the sample to the other attorney.…
Read MoreHow to Make Your Patent Strong Against Inter Partes Reexam
Strengthen your patent against Inter Partes Reexam One of the easiest ways for infringers to challenge an issued patent is through the Inter Partes Reexam process, commonly known as IPR. To successfully challenge a patent, someone has to produce a prior art document that would have changed the examiner’s mind. This is known as raising…
Read MoreWorthless Patents – How to Avoid the Biggest Pitfalls
Airplane wreckage on black sand beach, Iceland Worthless patent[1]s: they don’t have to be that way. Worthless patents happen for two reasons: the original invention was not selected properly and the patent was poorly prosecuted with the patent examiner. Properly selecting the invention is crucial for getting a good patent. Your conventional patent attorney will…
Read MoreWhat Do Patents Actually Cost?
How much does a patent cost[1][2]? The US average is about $60,000. There is a more detailed article on patent costs here. The patent process involves two major phases. Patent “preparation” is when the patent is originally drafted and filed with the patent office, and patent “prosecution” is the back and forth that happens with…
Read MoreStatistical Correlation Between Patent Ownership and Success
The more patents you own – and the better they are – the better your chances of success. France Brevets, a French sovereign investment fund, has published a report (in English) that correlates success of venture-backed startups with the patents held by the startup. As you would think the chances of success by the company…
Read MorePatent Holding Companies and Ownership Issues
BlueIron uses a conventional patent holding company structure to separate the ownership and control of a patent portfolio. In this construct, an operating company has full control of the assets, even though the patent assets are held in a separate company. The BlueIron arrangement gives the operating company full control of the assets through an…
Read MorePatents that are Bad Stand-Alone Investments
How BlueIron Evaluates Patent Investments. We do not invest in technologies where we don’t think there is a market for the patents alone. BlueIron treats client’s patents like collateral for loans. Our investment is protected only by the value that the patents would have on the open market, if the client walks away from the…
Read MoreBlueIron’s Patent Rating Checklist
A Patent Checklist to find out: How good is your invention? The spreadsheet contains many of the parameters discussed in BlueIron’s blog posts on patent due diligence.Please let us know if you have any suggestions/comments to make the checklist a better tool. Related Articles Actor Analysis for Patent Infringement Patent Descriptions: Every Word Hurts You…
Read MoreThree Prongs to Find Patentable Ideas that Support Your Business Plan
Sophisticated patent owners take a very proactive approach to managing their patent portfolios. Patents are assets with a 20 year lifespan. They will almost always outlast the products and services that were the inspiration for the inventions, but their usefulness may not actually be realized until many years after they are filed. Because of the…
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