I recently spoke to 2 different startup entrepreneurs who explained to me that each had “a brand that needed protecting.” To each, this meant that they intended to focus their sales and marketing efforts on customers who fit image they saw as befitting their respective products. While I was intrigued by the products and the amount of work each had done to date, I am afraid to say that if these entrepreneurs stay with their present mindset that only certain customers are desirable, each will fail. Full stop. For one of these entrepreneurs whose product had already launched, brand protection meant that he was trying to dissuade “undesirable” customers: apparently truck drivers LOVED his product and it was flying off the shelves at C-stores in which the test launch was conducted. This entrepreneur perceived these sales as a huge problem because he saw his product as high end and “above” the
A Branding Lesson for the Lean Startup Entrepreneur
Enhancing Innovation ROI by Adding Patents at the Front End: Some Resources
A new client has asked for some information on how consideration patents and IP at the front end of the innovation/product development process can enhance business value. Readers of this blog might find this material informative, also.
This is a published article from Innovation Management article entitled "How to Improve Innovation ROI with Early Stage Patent Expertise." In this article, I discuss how IP can help orient innovation teams in a direction that can enhance value capture. Practical steps to implement such a program into innovation processes is included in this article.
Here is a YouTube video that explains my process simply. In short, including IP at the front end of a company's innovation process allows one to enhance their calibration with respect to the IP rights of others to better ensure that they will achieve the desired ROI on
Hey “Patent Experts”: How Do You Like Groupon’s Patent Now? *Crickets*
Yesterday's announcement of the firing of Groupon's CEO and the hope for a rebirth of the company's business model brought to mind a post that I wrote a couple of years ago railing against the self-interested opinions of "patent experts" on why Google offered $6 Billion for Groupon in late 2010. Re-reading the post in the rear-view mirror, it is more clear than ever that Google made the offer for the precise reason I set out below in December 2010:
Google, and other acquirers, buy business models, not patents. As we strategy-focused IP people have been saying for years, a patent is worthless unless it covers a viable business model–either yours or one you want to own. Google is interested in Groupon because it offers them an established business model in an area that fits into their long term business strategy. Are the patents nice to have? Of course,
Is Traction the New IP for Startups? Maybe Not for Yours.
"Traction is the new IP." This emerging mantra results in many startup CEOs eschewing the traditional path of patent and other forms of IP protection. While I am aware of no rigorous studies conducted to date, anecdotal information indicates that startup entrepreneurs are increasingly saying no to patents, and likely to other forms of IP. Instead, these entrepreneurs first seek to validate their business models and then follow business plans focused on generating recurring revenue, often avoiding altogether the step of protecting their business idea or product with IP. From my own interactions with startup CEO's, I can confirm that the pendulum has swung very far to the "IP is worthless" side of things. But, is this emerging conventional wisdom actually correct? There is no doubt that over the years far too many startup company resources have been spent on patents and other forms of IP protection (many of
Do Patents Matter? Lean Startups Should Ignore Expert Advice and Let Their Data Drive Patenting Decisions
Many hold strong opinions on the value of patents to business. Both in person and online, there are any number of "experts" who stridently insist that without patent protection, a company's business goals are doomed. With about 350,000 new patent applications filed in 2012, there is no question that many agree that patents create, and are even critical to, business value. But, as the 2012 US presidential election cycle demonstrated, actual data can illuminate how expensive experts are often flat out wrong. So where's the "real data" that will allow business people to know whether a patent is the right decision for their company? This information is likely even more critical for startup entrepreneurs, most of whom have no choice but to rely on self-interested expert opinion regarding the value of patents to their business.
Entrepreneurs who follow
Lean Startup Methodology: How Patenting Decisions Fit into this New Business Framework
One of the first questions start up entrepreneurs usually ask sounds something like this: “Is it worth the effort and expense to get a patent on this business idea?” In countless conversations with clients in my years as a patent attorney, I could usually articulate multiple reasons why the person seeking to to start a new business venture unequivocally needed to file a patent application as soon as possible. Moreover, I could recite a litany of ills that could follow from failing to follow my advice. Following this conversation, I could typically expect a fat check from the client, whereupon I would dutifully draft strong patent on the subject invention. It was a nice living. These days, I work as a startup technology company CEO and look at patents much differently than I did in the past: as a consumer of patent services myself, I now examine patenting issues from
The Apple vs. Samsung Verdict Actually Demonstrates that Patents Do Promote Product Innovation
In the time that the Apple vs. Samsung patent fight has been underway, we have been inundated with an untold number of articles on how Apple is stifling innovation in the SmartPhone world. (Haven't seen these: just do a Google search for "Apple stif . . ." you don't have to type any more than this--the search auto-completes itself.) I often take a contrarian view from that stated by most "expert" commentators--be they members of the press or actual patent professionals, and the Apple v. Samsung verdict is no exception: I think the result actually demonstrates that the patent system is working just fine in this instance, thank you very much. But how can this be when Samsung got hit with more than a BILLION US DOLLAR jury verdict last week?!? Doesn't the fact that Samsung could not make a product without infringing Apple's multitude of patents mean that
Google Changes the Game Again–This Time for Patent Owners and Those Who Serve Them
Patrick Anderson of the great Gametime IP blog reported the details of Google's new prior art searching tool*. This is such important news, I thought it important to repeat it in a separate post. Patrick provides detailed instructions for how to use the Google patent searching tool, and I will not repeat that information here. This post provides commentary on why I think this is a very good development for the patent world. Google's original announcement on its blog is here. It does not appear coincidental that Google is upgrading its patent searching capabilities: in this press release from June 2010 we are informed of the partnership between Google and the USPTO to increase the amount of US patent information available to the public.
When used correctly, Google's tool can help "democratize" the patent analysis process
Patents–Who Needs Them? Not Most Startup Entrepreneurs.
A recent article in TechCrunch indicates that entrepreneurs are less likely to file patents than in the past. Nonetheless, there remain countless patent lawyers and agents who will argue convincingly that an entrepreneur must obtain a patent in order to succeed and who will take their $5-15K to file a darned good patent application that won't provide them a bit of business value in the long run. Even worse, the resources expended in the patent process robs the entrepreneur of needed cash that will allow them to gain customers, and of their most valuable asset: time. But when the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail--which is why those still in the business of writing patent applications will continue to make their case to entrepreneurs (and investors) who lack the domain expertise to
How to Improve your Innovation ROI with Early Stage Patent Expertise: In Depth Management Article
This article, How to Improve your Innovation ROI with Early Stage Patent Expertise, was published in late 2010 as a pay for download article in Innovation Management Magazine. It later became free for download, and I can share it with readers in this link. I hope those responsible for creating value from IP in their organizations can find the insights in this article helpful. Here is a synopsis:
Innovation teams are often removed organizationally from a company’s patent matters. This can mean that corporate innovation processes move forward with little or no consideration of whether competitors can legally “knock off” the resulting consumer offering. Companies may then not attain expected ROI because competitors can legally copy the innovation—be it a product, technology or otherwise—without incurring legal liability. It may not always be necessary to protect innovation