A patent permits the patent holder to keep others out. That is, a patent holder can prevent others from making, using, selling, offering to sell, or importing an invention within the United States and its territories and possessions. In the United States, these exclusionary rights generally last for 20 years from the date on which the patent application was filed. What the patent holder can keep others out of is defined by the “claims” of the patent. Patent claims describe the boundaries of the patent, much like a real property deed outlines the borders of a parcel of land. However, having a patent does not guarantee that the patent holder is free to use the claimed invention…
Tag: <span>patents</span>
From an intellectual property (IP) standpoint, probably the two biggest problems I encounter in my practice for early-to-middle stage technology companies are: (1) their failure to fully understand and keep abreast of the competitive intellectual property environment , and (2) their failure to institute procedures that will permit and encourage development of a strategic intellectual property portfolio. By “strategic,” I mean an intellectual property portfolio that focuses on both an offensive and defensive position — a portfolio that not only covers the product and all aspects of its manufacture, production, and applications (defensive portfolio development), but also provides significant blocking positions with respect to competitors’ efforts…