Hiya, No real answer to this.
Saying patents are worthless is patently wrong (excuse the pun!) Saying patents are *always* worth the money is also patently wrong. Here is my 2c worth. - Get a realistic handle on the costs for the whole process. $5K seems wildly optimistic & perhaps you could do a little bit more research to get a realistic budget - Once you lodge your first submission you have timeframes to execute additional steps and additional costs. If you don't follow through then your application lapses. - Expect to find lots of similar prior submissions - your idea is probably not that unique, there is a huge amount of stuff out there. - Expect to rework you submission a number of times (continuations) & expect these to take weeks to think through - Expect the process to take years If you don't have the capital, then the answer is you can't afford it. Bummer, but there it is. I don't know your business, nor your strategy, but I think it's reasonable, if your prepared to risk the capital, to start the process off. You can now tell people that you are "patent pending" which may give you additional credibility & show that you are serious about the business. If you execute well, you will have the capital to continue the process, if not, then you've only spent $5K. rgds, - matt. On 22 March 2010 20:32, Rich <roadtripr...@gmail.com> wrote: > Hi, I wanted to get a range of opinions on the subject of patenting. > > I have a website right now that is under development and soon to be > launched. The particular concept of the website does not exist yet. > It's very simple and based on feedback, it has some great potential. > > I spoke to a patent lawyer who said he felt pretty comfortable saying > that he could file a patent for the website concept. When I say > concept, I mean what the website does and how it does it. The cost of > filing would be $5000 (inclusive of his fees). > > My question is...should I bother? > > My reckoning is that if the web giants came along and wanted to copy > my idea, they could go ahead and do so because I wouldn't have the > money to legally enforce my patent. To be honest, I wouldn't have the > money to enforce it with most people cause I'm using my personal funds > and it's pretty much all gone into the site and marketing etc. So > does that make a patent a waste of time and money? My main reason for > getting it would just be to serve as a deterrent to someone copying my > site. > > What are your thoughts? > > On another issue...I'm totally new to this group (the patent lawyer > was the one who put me onto it)....are there people here that are > looking for things to invest in? Like I said, I'm doing all this with > my own cash and would be open to some more funds so I can take it > further quicker... > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Silicon Beach > Australia mailing list. > > Guidelines on discussion: http://tr.im/ujKF > > No lurkers! It is expected that you introduce yourself: http://tr.im/ujMm > > To post to this group, send email to > silicon-beach-australia@googlegroups.com > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > silicon-beach-australia+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com<silicon-beach-australia%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com> > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/silicon-beach-australia?hl=en?hl=en > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to silicon-beach-australia+ > unsubscribegooglegroups.com or reply to this email with the words "REMOVE > ME" as the subject. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Silicon Beach Australia mailing list. Guidelines on discussion: http://tr.im/ujKF No lurkers! It is expected that you introduce yourself: http://tr.im/ujMm To post to this group, send email to silicon-beach-australia@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to silicon-beach-australia+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/silicon-beach-australia?hl=en?hl=en To unsubscribe from this group, send email to silicon-beach-australia+unsubscribegooglegroups.com or reply to this email with the words "REMOVE ME" as the subject.
