KnowThis Tutorial: Marketing Method Patents

Business method patents have emerged from the dot-com era relatively unscathed despite relentless attacks from business professionals, academics, government officials and, of course, lawyers defending clients accused of patent infringement. The fact that business processes, and in particular marketing methods, are eligible for patent protection is not well understood by most marketing professionals. Such lack of awareness may cause significant problems on two fronts. First, marketers who are not aware that patents may be obtained on marketing methods could be giving away intellectual property rights and with it competitive advantage, including extensive lose of revenue. Second, and possibly more important, a lack of understanding of business method patents may result in infringement lawsuits that could devastate a business.

In this KnowThis.com tutorial we examine business method patents within marketing. We will refer to these as marketing method patents (MMP), though when applied to marketing on the Internet these are often also referred to as Internet patents. We focus only on the patent situation in the United States . Internationally the view of MMP is far different and, in fact, many countries do not permit the patenting of business methods.

MMP can be viewed as both an opportunity and a threat. In Part 1 of the tutorial, we look at what a marketing organization can do to avoid possible infringement by offering techniques for locating business method patents. In our upcoming Part 2, we will provide guidance on how to approach the patenting process.

This tutorial includes the following topics:

The information found in this tutorial is provided for information purposes only and in no way should it be considered a substitute for obtaining legal advice. KnowThis.com urges readers who are interested in business method patents to consult appropriate legal council.