If you want to profit off something new and amazing that you created – or at the very least, get credit for your invention – obtaining a patent can lock down the rights to your intellectual property. However, the patent application process is long, complicated and very costly. It must also be completed in every country in which you wish to be protected. So before you begin your patent journey, take a moment to make sure that you don’t accidentally put a stumbling block in front of your own success.
Make sure the invention is patentable
Patents give you territorial rights – meaning they only protect you in the country or region in which your patent is granted. Most countries rely on three basic requirements to grant a patent: the invention must be novel, non-obvious and useful. However, there are different interpretations in different countries – and entire debates on whether certain subject matter areas are even patentable at all (e.g. animals, plants and DNA). So, before starting the patent application process, you need to decide where you want to file and then check that your invention meets the patentability requirements in each of those countries. Read more