Your company has developed an actually clever brand-new item. Should you apply for a patent, and should you trademark the product's name? Like so numerous other points in life, organization, marital relationship and sporting activities, it depends.
Patent a New Product? First off, you can not actually "patent" a service or product. You can just patent the technology that went into developing that services or product. Getting as well as getting a license has numerous advantages.
1. Protection and also Exclusivity: First and also leading, obtaining a license for your invention prevents competitors from using it to create identical or similar items. When Post-it notes came out, 3M http://edition.cnn.com/search/?text=inventors had actually patented the innovation behind them, and also that provided 3M an important monopoly for lots of years. Understand, nevertheless, that the United States Patent Office issues licenses; they do not impose them. So if a firm infringes on your patent, you will need to defend your license with civil InventHelp Inventions Store Happy.
2. Extra Revenue: You can license your patent to various other companies. While it possibly does not make sense to certify your license to a straight rival, you might license it to companies in various other industries as well as create a good profits stream. If the item that uses the innovation is not producing the wanted sales or profits for your organization, you can after that certify the patent - or perhaps market the license - to generate revenue from it.
3. Better Safe than Sorry: If you do NOT obtain a patent, as well as two or three years later on you discover that a firm is utilizing your technology to produce a product or service, you may regret not patenting the modern technology when you had the possibility to do so.
If the patent attorney or patent representative thinks your innovation can be patented, he will assist you via the license application procedure. A license lawyer is a lawyer that specializes in what's called "patent prosecution," the procedure of using for as well as receiving a license. To find a license agent or patent attorney, utilize our totally free Patent Agent and Patent Attorney Referral Service.
Safeguarding Your Innovation: As soon as you have gotten a patent, you should make use of the term "Patent Pending" in your sales literature and also summary of the product. Doing so will basically note your lawn, and also it might discourage rivals from duplicating your product.
Hallmark a New Product? Equally as you can not patent a product - you can only patent the technology behind the product you can not trademark an item: You can just hallmark the name (or brand name) of the item. If your new item has a distinct name to identify it, you need to definitely look for a hallmark if for nothing else reason than to prevent competitors from perplexing consumers as well as stealing sales from you by using the exact same or a similar item recognition for their completing product.
If you merely call your new item the Model FHJ-604, after that no hallmark is really required. If, nevertheless, you've developed a name that is distinct as well as unforgettable, (the Die Hard ® battery from Sears is an example), you must absolutely protect your new and also cutting-edge item identification.
Talk to a hallmark attorney, and also if he Invent Help tech thinks your brand or product name can be trademarked, request the hallmark. When the United States Patent as well as Trademark Office concerns you a trademark, it will certainly be a signed up trademark, so you will after that put a " ® "after the brand name.
License versus Trademark: While both patents and hallmarks are provided by the United States Patent as well as Trademark Office, they are really unrelated. A product's technology can be patented while the product's name is not trademarked. Or the item name can be trademarked while the product's innovation is not patented. Sears declared a hallmark for "Die Hard" but there are no licenses associated with the battery. Despite the picture developed by the brand name, there is second best, innovative or unique concerning a Die Hard ® battery. 3M filed for a hallmark for "Post-it" as well as additionally patented the technology behind the product.
If your product makes use of an one-of-a-kind technology, patenting your creation makes sense. If you came up with a marketable name for your brand-new item, trademarking the name makes sense. Both issues must be taken into consideration separately.
It is worth a couple of hundred dollars to have a patent lawyer or patent agent look at your innovation and also identify if it is worth applying for a license. If the patent lawyer or patent agent thinks your creation can be patented, he will certainly assist you with the license application procedure. A patent attorney is a lawyer who specializes in what's called "patent prosecution," the procedure of using for and receiving a patent. To locate a license representative or license attorney, use our free Patent Agent and also Patent Attorney Referral Service.
Patent versus Trademark: While both licenses and trademarks are released by the US Patent as well as Trademark Office, they are really unrelated.