Entrepreneurship
USPTO Abandonment Rate Nearly Tripling Since COVID
Patents are being abandoned at historically high rates, pointing to a lack of confidence in the future. An updated analysis by BlueIron shows that the COVID crisis has markedly affected business’s IP strategy. A previous analysis done in March is here. The abandonment rate has shot up since COVID started, especially for Small Entities, which…
Read MoreInventing and “feeling it”
It is easy to think you were an inventor when you really were not. When I was an engineer at HP, I wrote up 3-4 invention disclosures before a meeting, where we were going to discuss a new product. At the meeting, I pitched a couple of the ideas *I had already submitted* for patenting. …
Read MoreAre you thinking of giving up on your patent application? Think again. Financing is available.
Many companies are abandoning their patent applications. In fact, the abandonment rate has tripled since the Covid-19 crisis began. However, there is specialized financing to keep your patents pending – and even build out a bigger portfolio – so you will be in a powerful position when the economy opens up again. BlueIron is the…
Read MoreNational Family Support finds help with BlueIron
(Loveland, CO) National Family Support, Inc announces its first patent filed through BlueIron. National Family Support is rolling out a suite of services for managing child support payments. “With billions of dollars of delinquent child support payments nationally, we provide loans to parents who are behind – and we guarantee all future payments. This means…
Read MoreAutomed Gets Investment from BlueIron
Automed, Inc., the world’s leader in medication delivery for livestock based in Ames, Iowa, announces a patent financing arrangement with BlueIron of Loveland, Colorado. “We are able to get better patent protection and grow the company at the same time” says David Edwards, CEO of Automed. “Our patent expenses were getting ridiculously high, and we…
Read MoreEffects of COVID-19 on Patents – Twice The Number of Abandonments
As companies hunker down for the effects of the COVID-19 virus, they are abandoning their IP protection at TWICE the normal rate. And it is likely to go up much further. AND this has never happened before. BlueIron’s study looked at recent USPTO abandonments to see what, if any, effects were from COVID-19. The results…
Read More1% Patent – 99% Execution
Note: this is an excerpt from my forthcoming book “Startup IP Strategy.” As we all know, business is usually 10% idea and 90% execution. The successful companies rarely have the single best product on the market, but they do have successful execution. Startup companies – and any business with a new product – spend more…
Read MoreHow Big Law Hurts Startups
Many inventors and entrepreneurs like to tout their relationship with a Big Law Firm. It is too bad they do not know how the sausage gets made. Touting that Big Law wrote your patents is NOT a badge of quality. I review countless patents for startup companies and talk to lots of entrepreneurs. One of…
Read MoreCramdowns, Receivership, Bankruptcy – why patent financing is good for founders and angels.
BlueIron’s patent financing puts your IP in a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) – an LLC that holds your patents. It can be thought of as a lease with a buyout option – similar to leasing a car. Our contracts have a special provision called a Third Party Beneficiary Agreement. The Third Party Beneficiary Agreement allows…
Read MoreThe Entrepreneur and the Investor – the story of bad IP protection.
An angel investor will ask the entrepreneur “Do you have a patent?” The next thing the entrepreneur does is run out and gets a patent. Is this smart? Note: this excerpt is from my forthcoming book “Startup IP Strategy.” The calculus is simple to the entrepreneur: they think a patent will help to raise money,…
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