International Patent Strategy

Introduction

In today’s global marketplace, patent protection continues to be an important part of a company’s overall business and intellectual property strategy. However, protection provided by any one patent is limited to within the country in which it was granted. For example, a U.S. patent provides no protection against infringing activities that take place in Great Britain or Japan, or even just over the borders in Canada or Mexico. Thus, to secure patent rights in countries other than the U.S., the company must apply for and be granted patent protection within each particular country of interest. This article provides a basic overview of applying for patent protection outside the U.S. and strategies for determining which countries provide the most value for a particular business.