The Last Legal Monopoly

I had a college professor tell me that all major invention and innovation had already occurred as of now- now being 1985. While he was telling me this news, Bill Gates was thinking about taking his company public. You may have heard of it- it’s called Microsoft.
Of course, the moronic professor was wrong. The type of work that makes a company like Microsoft the most valuable is developing a patent or copyright. A friend of mine calls intellectual property “the last legal monopoly”. They are very difficult to obtain, but they allow the owner a “monopoly” of the use of the idea for a period of time.
Replacement Services was awarded a U.S. Patent in March of 2005. The owner created a process to simplify and speed up insurance claims for lost and stolen jewelry using the Internet. The company allows insurance claim adjusters to specify what jewelry needs to be replaced. The company uses a database of finished pieces of jewelry to determine the cost of replacement. Replacement Services was able to obtain the patent based on the unique features of the product.
I’ve dealt with nearly a dozen business owners who thought they may have had an idea that could be protected by patent. They found that the bar for getting a patent or copyright is very high. More specific ideas are better candidates. Finally, it’s important to have a frank conversation about your idea and the potential cost with a patent attorney. You may find that you can use your concept or idea to build a successful business without incurring the cost of a patent or copyright.
The Lesson: Take the time to fully investigate whether it is practical or necessary to pursue a patent or copyright. Your business can benefit from implementing your great idea even without a patent.
Your Homework: What are the best 2-3 ideas that you believe make your business successful? Are those ideas unique? Are they used by your competitors? If not, you might consider discussing the ideas with an attorney.
(Source: “Hidden Gem”, St. Louis Business Journal, 5-16-07)