Why Are Patent's Complicated?

Issued by the government, a patent gives its owner rights to a design, process, or invention for a certain period. Enforceable in court, patents protect original ideas and give their owners legal rights to profit from them.

Individuals and business entities can own patents and sell rights to others. The present competitive environment has seen patent-motivated mergers and acquisitions. For example, Google bought Motorola Mobility to gain the rights to patents held by that company. Google publicly stated that their new patents would help protect their Android operating system from competitors, such as Apple.

Companies have used patents and patent law as weapons to restrict, deter, and defer competition. In the smartphone industry, for example, Apple and Samsung have long used patents to limit the capabilities of competing phones and to restrict the sale of products in certain markets. In some cases, analysts attribute the weaponization of patents to the ability of lawyers to argue cases based on archaic laws passed before the existence of most modern technologies. Those who understand patents and patent law have distinct advantages that can make their products more competitive and keep competitors at bay.

Multiple Patents

Multiple types of patents sometime overlap, causing legal gray areas that only courts can resolve. In the United States, people and business entities can apply for utility, design, and plant patents, but other countries use different categories to differentiate the nature of patents. Furthermore, patent law varies between countries, complicating the task of international patent enforcement. For example, if you patent a design in the United States for your computer support Los Angeles company, your design might not have the same privileges in Europe.

The Patent Process

Debates over international patents have largely settled, now that the U.S. and much of the world agree that patent rights belong to those who first filed for a patent for any given product. Still, legal battles have erupted that contend the entity that was the first to invent a technology have priority over those who first filed a patent application.

Thanks to globalization, the patent process can take a long time. Expensive time consuming patent searches must confirm that no one else in the world has patented a similar concept. After the completion of the patent search, the application process can begin.

In the U.S., the lengthy patent process has no limits to its duration, although many people say the process takes just under three years on average to complete. Following the global patent search, an applicant is filed for a patent. After receiving the completed application, the patent office performs a search of its own and gives applicants a chance to respond to any discoveries. The office subsequently publishes the proposed new patent and conducts an examination of the patent. When an application meets all the requirements of the patent office, the applicant receives a patent. Patent rules and application processes often change.

The Cost of Patents

Despite published application fees, the cost of obtaining a patent varies, depending on the type of patent sought and the complexity of the proposed patented design. The U.S. Patent Office has a published fee schedule that establishes the basic filing fee of $280. Filing entities can reduce this and subsequent fees by achieving small or micro entity status. Attorney fees and other administrative costs can make the cost of patents unaffordable for many entities. Even after receiving a patent, owners face additional unpredictable expenses involved in defending their patents from legitimate and frivolous legal challenges.

Regardless of their complexity and cost, the importance of patents as a means to secure rights to original designs and concepts and as a means to restrict competition makes patents an important element of the business landscape that no one should ignore.