Overview of How to Register a Patent for Start-up

With the revolution of the Digital era and tough competition in businesses, there are very few start-ups or ventures with unique business ideas or plans. However, once the business is launched in the market, there is a very high chance that other brands would try to copy the product, the technology, the business idea, or anything which is unique about the Start-up. We are not talking about copyrights today, but rather patents. A Patent can also allow you to charge or file a lawsuit against a business that wishes to copy your product or use it in some manner.

What is a Patent?

According to its literal definition, ‘A Patent is a title that gives an owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of years in exchange for publishing an enabling public disclosure of the invention or the idea.’ However, according to the different countries, states, and laws, the extent or the tenure of the Patent rights would vary. There are a few industries or fields where having a Patent for your business is mandatory in some cases.

Documents Required for Patent for Start-up

There is a strict process that is followed while acquiring Patents, and hence you need to present yourself with a few of the important documents that would be necessary for passing the process of acquiring a Patent.

Title of Patent
Digital Signature of the Applicant
Signed Copy of Patent Specification
Authorization to the Patent Attorney
Declaration of Inventorship signed by the Inventor
The Patent Questionnaire
Claims of the Patent
Detailed Specification Exhibiting Inventive Steps

Advantages of Having a Patent for Start-up

You must have heard many businesses with unique ideas or products talk about filing their Application for Patents. There are several reasons why most business owners would recommend you to file a Patent for your business, some of the advantages for the same are as follows.

Protecting Intellectual Property

A Patent helps you to cover or save your business idea or the unique product from getting manufactured, sold, or distributed elsewhere by some other party. There have been many cases or instances where businesses copy other businesses’ ideas or products for increasing their sales, if you have a Patent for the same you can easily avoid any such scenario.

Surpass your Competition

If you have a unique technology, service, or unique product that is not available with any other business in the market, it almost gives you a Monopoly. By having a Patent, you can clearly cut-off all your competition and promote your product in the market at your own decided price. You can also use the fact that your concerned idea or product is being Patented, meaning that no other market possesses the above product or service, this can help you to attract customers easily.

An Opportunity to Earn

Who said that having a Patent would help you to just safeguard your start-up idea? A Patent also gives you an opportunity to allow other businesses to have a license for using your product, start-up idea, or services and in return, the same business would pay you the fees for acquiring the license on a regular basis. You can also sell your own Patent and earn money. However, instead of selling the Patent away, you can allow other businesses to have the license and earn better.

How to Register a Patent for Start-up

We already read about all the documents that are necessary for carrying out the processes for filing a Patent. We also read about the various advantages of having a Patent, and now let us understand the procedure for Registering a Patent for your Start-up.

Select the Mode of Registration

There are two ways through which you can Register your Start-up, first is Offline, where you would directly visit the office of Intellectual Property India, and then carry out the offline procedure by taking the form, filling up the details, submitting the documents, and so on. The other process is to go through the online mode of Filing a Patent, though the online method takes a lot of time for acquiring the Patent, it is more convenient.

Visit the Official Website of the Patent

If you decide to opt for the Offline mode of Registration then you don’t need to read further, the Offline procedure is simple and has been already mentioned in the first point. However, if you plan to apply online, you would need to first visit the Official website of Patent to file an application, the official website is,
www.Ipindia.gov.in.

Patent Guide or FAQ

It would be recommended to check out the Patent Guide that is available on the website or more commonly visit the FAQ section, where you would be led to a PDF of information that would include all the important questions. It would contain answers to all questions such as How to Apply, Requirements, Eligibility Criteria, etc. This step is not mandatory, but it would be advisable to follow.

Provisional or Complete Specification

Once you start filling out the form for acquiring the Patent, you can either submit the application with a Provisional Specification of your unique idea, start-up product, etc, or you can directly provide the Complete specification of the same. The Complete specification is a necessary requirement; hence it would be advisable to fill that instead of the Provisional specification.

Examination and Grant of Patent

Once you have submitted your application with the precise details, your Application undergoes an examination. Once it is examined, you are asked to make changes or provide details if it is necessary, or you are declared eligible and granted the Patent within a period of 6 to 9 months, thereby getting your application notified in the Patent Office Journal.

Conclusion

A Patent is a necessary action to be taken for protecting a Start-up Idea, some unique service, or a unique product, technology, and so on. The various steps involved in Registering a Patent for your Start-up are by Selecting the Mode of Registration, visiting the website of the Patent, providing provisional or Complete Specifications, and processing of Examination and Grant of the Patent.

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