I have an internet website. It is a great idea along the lines of a 99cent store. But technology not retail. Anyways i have not put it live because I am afraid someone will steal my idea and do it bigger and better. How do I obtain a patent/copyright/trademark? Which do I need? Am I patenting the name/or idea. Also what is the cost associated with this. Finally do I incorporate the business now or can I do it after the patent if the business does indeed take off?
You can't patent or copyright an idea or a business name. You can register a trademark for your company's name, if no one else has beat you to it. That takes a thorough trademark search - not only of registered trademarks, but of unregistered "common law" trademarks as well. It's advisable to hire an attorney with expertise in trademarks to do this. Once you are sure you have a trademarkable name for your company, you can file your trademark application - in the US the initial filing fee ranges from $275 to $375 per international class. You can read about US Trademarks here: http://www.uspto.gov/faq/trademarks.jsp http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/qs/ope/fee2009september15.htm#tm There have been patents issued to business models, but the odds are that your business idea isn't as novel as you think it is and recent rulings have made patenting business models more difficult. Also, obtaining a patent can be very expensive. At the least you should hire a patent agent or patent attorney to do an analysis of your business model and a prior art search to determine if your idea is even patentable in the first place. If they do think your business model is patentable, you then have the cost of having the patent written (a poorly written patent isn't going to be worth much to you) and the cost of filing it with the USPTO or your country's patent office. Expect on the order of thousands of dollars at least. Read more about business model patents: http://techdirt.com/articles/20081030/1117172691.shtml http://www.uspto.gov/patents/basics/index.html http://www.uspto.gov/faq/patents.jsp But even if you trademark your company name and patent your business model you won't be insulated from competition and people who will borrow your idea. I think you would probably be best off focusing on how to launch your business in such a way that you would be far ahead of any competitors if they choose to copy your business model. You need funding for your site and you should be preparing an awesome dog and pony show to convince venture capitalists to give you the money you need. Also consider finding a business partner who is experienced in launching new online businesses. It's unlikely you'll find the right someone here at DP - you want to look for people who have launched their own successful businesses, and who have had experience with all the steps: intellectual property/raising capital/promotion and marketing. You are more likely to succeed that way than if you try to go it alone. And since it looks like you are in California, you have access to the expertise to be had in Silicon Valley. Check out Venture Beat, blog posts like this and Valleywag to see who the movers and shakers are. Find out where other local entrepreneurs hang out and the conferences they go to and start networking. And here are a couple of SoCal entrepreneurial organizations - I have no idea how good they are: http://socaltech.com/ http://www.linkedin.com/groupInvitation?groupID=1615&sharedKey=5F355D6E4FA2 http://cc.tcosc.org/entrepreneur/southern-california/ http://scvn.org/main/summary Knowing the right people can take you a long way.
Wow thanks for the response Nonny.....I just have this feeling that once I launch my online business....some one will swoop in and steal my idea and do it better. I was hoping I could lock it down somehow. And I think finding a partner is a bit outside my ballpark right now!
Well, I think it's definitely worth trying to network with entrepreneurial types, so that when you are ready to launch your business you know some people to call. You don't have to partner up with them right away or give them any details of your business plan, and they might end up giving you some ideas.
Nobody can be unique on the internet, however everyone can do things their own way. I wouldn't worry so much about people stealing your site idea because let's face it, it will happen in one way or another - especailly if / when it gets big. I would worry more about outclassing any rivalries that may form, and making sure people come to you, not them.
This is what I am really worried about.....I can provide a good service....but my site design and business process will look very basic I am sure. But hey maybe I can make enough money to build things up a bit.
That's why finding a joint venture partner (or hiring a designer) is a good idea - you don't have to do it all by yourself! Good luck r_w.