Patent Strategy
Problems Caused by the Attorney/Client Relationship
The attorney/client relationship is one of the most sacred and important tenants of the US legal system, but it causes weird side effects. The attorney/client relationships HURTS startup companies when it comes to patents. The attorney/client relationship can be a problem, especially in areas of business. Because of the ultra-high importance of this relationship, the…
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 MorePatents that “Hide the Ball”
I had a telephone interview with a patent examiner the other week and in the course of the interview, the examiner said that he really liked my patent application because I did not try to hide the ball with the invention. I was originally taught to write patent applications by obfuscating the invention. Specifications are…
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.
Read MoreWriting Your Own Patent
Writing your own patent? Do a business plan first. Some inventors write their own patent applications. This can be a very valuable exercise because forcing yourself to put the invention down on paper can help you better understand the invention, as well as think through new versions of the invention. In many cases, these pro…
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…
Read MoreDue Diligence for Patents – Licensing Potential
In many cases, the licensing potential of an invention is the best way to see its complete value. When rating inventions for patenting, the licensing potential of an invention is a key component. In this analysis, we are interested in the maximum potential uses of the invention. Technologies that are transportable or applicable to different…
Read MoreActor Analysis for Patent Infringement
Due Diligence for Patents – Actor Analysis tells who is the likely infringer. Actor analysis is often overlooked when valuing inventions for patenting, or for valuing patents once they are issued. With actor analysis, we want to know who is the actual actor that infringes the invention. This analysis often identifies patents that you would…
Read MoreCalculating the Economic Value of a Patent
Due Diligence for Patents – The value of an invention is proportional to the ECONOMIC impact it has on a product or market. The economic value of an invention is notoriously hard to estimate, but such analysis can be used to compare different inventions to stack rank the inventions – or to highlight the advantages/disadvantages…
Read MoreMapping an Invention to Competitor’s Products
Due Diligence for Patents – Comparing Inventions to Competitor’s Products. Inventions with external business value will map to competitors or to potential outside licensees. These patents might not map directly to your products, but are assets that make your company more attractive to acquisition, and give you leverage in negotiating with a competitor. These assets…
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