Are Software Patents necessary? (Selling Enterprise Software to F500 Companies)

[Guest-5ty5s4]

Why, or why not?

If yes, do you opt for a design or utility patent? What's your general strategy for protecting your IP?

If no, same thing: how do you protect your IP from competitors and pirates?

Note this is for enterprise software.

Yes, we really do have the software and already have customers. Asking for my company.

-- Also - copyright registration is another route. Do both? Do one or the other? Neither?

 

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[Hong_Kong]

Why, or why not?

If yes, do you opt for a design or utility patent? What's your general strategy for protecting your IP?

If no, same thing: how do you protect your IP from competitors and pirates?

Note this is for enterprise software.

Yes, we really do have the software and already have customers. This was developed over a few decades, before I was born. Asking for my company.

-- Also - copyright registration is another route. Do both? Do one or the other? Neither?

Ehh, this is a complicated answer with no right or wrong answer.

One way to look at is in terms of potential risk. Not having patents or even violating a patent is potentially okay as long as it fits into your risk profile.

Having IP and not enforcing it is pointless, and also potentially damages your future claims if you aren't going after everyone.

Just because you have IP doesn't mean someone else can't rip it off, it just means now you can sue (hopefully).

If you want to raise VC it helps. In some countries governments will give you grants / let you be reimbursed on RD if you have IP. You can do special corporate structures with IP by lets say holding the IP in isolated companies, which lowers your risk profile on other trading companies. Countries also offer lower tax rates on IP holding companies (usually called a 'IP holding box tax'). You can sell off the IP, or license it (potentially). You can sue companies using your IP and get extra cash.

It really depends.

 

[Jon L]

Don't bother:

1) Patent suits are very expensive. 7 figures. If you don't spend this money to enforce your patents, then other companies can claim that you don't care, and your patent will be invalidated
2) Unless you have a unique thing like Amazon's one-click ordering, its pretty easy to code around a patent. Even with one-click, there are Buy Now buttons all over the place.
3) Focus more on keeping your code and logic safe: don't put important formulas in easily readable browser-side formats, for example
4) Focus most on your overall business. A patent won't do much for you unless you're selling the heck out of the software

Source: I worked for an enterprise software company that had no patents, but yet managed to run most of a certain type of system on the Las Vegas strip.

 

[Guest-5ty5s4]

Don't bother:

1) Patent suits are very expensive. 7 figures. If you don't spend this money to enforce your patents, then other companies can claim that you don't care, and your patent will be invalidated
2) Unless you have a unique thing like Amazon's one-click ordering, its pretty easy to code around a patent. Even with one-click, there are Buy Now buttons all over the place.
3) Focus more on keeping your code and logic safe: don't put important formulas in easily readable browser-side formats, for example
4) Focus most on your overall business. A patent won't do much for you unless you're selling the heck out of the software

Source: I worked for an enterprise software company that had no patents, but yet managed to run most of a certain type of system on the Las Vegas strip.

Thank you for this.

I think you're both right, and the business, selling, and even contracts with customers are going to be a lot more important...

 

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