Patent and idea protection advice needed

[FinanceBizWiz]

Hi,

I have an idea which I have been progressing over the past few months and I am now going ahead with the idea. It is something that isn’t being done at the moment and I am a bit concerned that someone can come along and copy etc.

How can I stop this without the gruelling process of getting a patent?

Someone has told me that you can pay to register your idea but there doesn’t seem to be anybody official offering this service?

 

[Mr D]

If your idea requires a patent to protect it then will anything less be any use?

Ideas are 2 a penny.

 

[FinanceBizWiz]

If your idea requires a patent to protect it then will anything less be any use?

Ideas are 2 a penny.

Yes but patents are expensive and take up to 4 years to obtain?

 

[Mr D]

Yes but patents are expensive and take up to 4 years to obtain?

What legal protections do you want? Perhaps start with that.

 

[FinanceBizWiz]

What legal protections do you want? Perhaps start with that.

For someone not to copy the idea and set the exact same business up. Intellectual property rights and patents are something I not familiar with at all, that’s why I’m trying to get some advice.

 

[Dazdot]

Best to speak with a patent attorney and get some advice.

 

[obscure]

Yes but patents are expensive and take up to 4 years to obtain?

More expensive that the money you will lose if someone copies your idea?

Talk to a patent lawyer to find out if what you have can even be protected. Ideas can't be protected - it needs to be a process or invention.

Also, my understanding is that you can start the process for a smaller fee and then pay the bulk of the fees towards the end of the application process. Because you have applied no one else can submit the same application so you are protected even though you have not actually got the patent yet. This is why people mark products "Patent pending". You can see if the idea works before paying the bulk of the money. Of course this may be a myth so talk to a patent lawyer for accurate info.

 

[pentel]

Paying for a patent is only the start of the costs.

If your patent is infringed then the cost of taking action to stop the infringement will make the cost of the patent look very small indeed.

 

[fisicx]

For someone not to copy the idea and set the exact same business up.

You can’t patent a business idea. You can’t stop someone copying your business model.

All you can do is launch the business and be better than the clone.

Until MegaCorps comes along and splurges millions on marketing their version of your idea.

 

[FinanceBizWiz]

You can’t patent a business idea. You can’t stop someone copying your business model.

All you can do is launch the business and be better than the clone.

Until MegaCorps comes along and splurges millions on marketing their version of your idea.

That is the problem isn’t it, you’re never really protected. Like you say, you just need to be better than the clone, even if they’re spending millions on marketing you can still be better somehow.

 

[Mr D]

Your competitors may watch what you are doing then try and improve on it. At which point you may well be doing the same to them.

Ok say you spend money getting a patent for a product. You have it produced and start selling it.
Then you find some Chinese company is making a very similar item / looks the same item and taking some of your market.
What do you do?

Legal action against a Chinese company? Having a patent doesn't in itself stop all competitors doing the same thing. As you may have noticed with some of the stuff for sale on the internet that does have patents.

 

[FinanceBizWiz]

Your competitors may watch what you are doing then try and improve on it. At which point you may well be doing the same to them.

Ok say you spend money getting a patent for a product. You have it produced and start selling it.
Then you find some Chinese company is making a very similar item / looks the same item and taking some of your market.
What do you do?

Legal action against a Chinese company? Having a patent doesn't in itself stop all competitors doing the same thing. As you may have noticed with some of the stuff for sale on the internet that does have patents.

Very true. This is why I’m asking, because is it even worth it anyway? May as well try and do it the best and be better than the people that can’t think up theirs own ideas!

 

[fisicx]

That is the problem isn’t it, you’re never really protected. Like you say, you just need to be better than the clone, even if they’re spending millions on marketing you can still be better somehow.

But be first to market, build up a reputation and reap the rewards while it lasts. I've got a product that has been cloned and copied but clients keep coming back to mine - because it's better than the cheap copy.

 

[Mark T Jones]

The hardest part of a genuinely new idea is getting market acceptance - it can cost millions and take a lot of time

For this reason, the best outcome is often for a BigCo to 'steal' it and bring it to market, leaving you to deliver a more suitable version to your market niche.

 

[The Byre]

If this is your app thing (again) then it would probably fall under copyright law and is therefore covered automatically.

As fewer than one-in-ten-thousand apps earn anything whatsoever, the chances of someone wanting to copy one of the 99.99% are infinitesimal.