A Board Certified Patent Attorney
Archive for the ‘American Inventor’s Protection Act’ Category
How Do I Protect My Idea Outside Florida and the United States?
If you are an inventor interested in protecting your idea outside the United States or mitigating foreign imports from China that impact your market share & profit margins, then my number 1 suggestion is to ask yourself this question: How ambitious are your commercial expansion goals outside the United States? Once you pose this question, it helps formulate a strategy for foreign filings, since you could choose to target ONE country or multiple nations in the initial application. This of course causes some anxiety for inventors since it can be an overwhelming thought. However, there is a simple way to approach this dilemma: I suggest filing the initial patent in the United States since this automatically protects you from foreign imports, including those from China. The inventor then has a full 12 mo
Overview of the American Inventor’s Protection Act of 1999
If life were like the popular board game Monopoly��, obtaining meaningful patent protection would be as simple as buying up Boardwalk and Park Place. In the board game, you simply purchase the property you want, place houses or hotels on them over time, and eagerly collect a continual revenue stream from the successful venture. The rules governing monopolies on ideas, however, are significantly more complex and have recently undergone one of the most far-reaching changes in history. As you mull over the unique features of your newly discovered invention or method of doing business, it is important to consider recent changes in patent law and their particular importance to individual inventors. PUBLISHING OF APPLICATIONS If you are like most inventors, the thought of publicly disclosing the secret details of