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Excellent points about the article but, in my view, it is too extreme to say that patents are a "waste of time for startups." Patents can and do help startups
by grellas 17y ago
Excellent points about the article but, in my view, it is too extreme to say that patents are a "waste of time for startups."
Patents can and do help startups with their positioning for funding, among other things, though software patents usually are a waste of time, as is any strategy based on the idea of using patents to take on a large player in the marketplace, unless one wants to become a patent troll.
- tptacek 17y agoBut every hour spent on patents (and babysitting patent lawyers takes many, many hours) is an hour not spent executing on the core business. So you have to ask yourself, what's going to improve my positioning more: the same freeze-dried reconstituted IP PowerPoint strategy used by every other VC-backed company, or N x $50,000 more revenue? Just to be devil's advocate.
- grellas 17y agoJust speaking from considerable experience that a minority of startups can benefit hugely from a good patent strategy (e.g., saw one of my early-stage fiber optics clients get to $400M annual run rate and multi-B valuation, with the dozens of patents filed by its founder proving to be a major factor in valuation at interim funding, at IPO, and at ultimate merger with JDSU). I find your overall logic compelling, however, as I have seen startups use patents all too often for empty positioning, at considerable cost.