New businesses, especially in technology, are often driven by new inventions. Thus, they require an inordinate amount of attention to intellectual property (IP) issues. However, being a new business, these companies are often the ones least able to afford the advice of an IP expert or a patent attorney. Groups that identify a stated IP strategy are shown to be much more likely to attract investors’ interest. So IP is more about getting a business’ house in order, whatever that looks like. Since organizing an IP strategy requires some expertise, Stephen DiBiase wrote this book to educate in-house IP experts. By consulting this compact guide, a company can therefore retain a strategic approach without relying on outside experts.
The laws around IP vary from country to country, and DiBiase, as with many other books, centers his approach around the US. American law defines four main categories: copyright, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets. This book discusses each of these topics in turn. Critically, DiBiase addresses how each of these can fit into a business strategy and common pitfalls that businesses should avoid.
Because the digital domain is an evolving topic, particular attention is paid to this field. Software, my field, has been mostly understood under US copyright law because it is considered a written product of language. However, the courts have recently granted some patents for software that addresses business processes. Clearly, this is an evolving issue in the legal domain, and DiBiase’s wisdom can guide. Initial impressions of how the Internet of Things, an emerging field at the time of publication, will intersect with IP concerns also receives special treatment here.
This book is not written by a lawyer or for the legal profession. Rather, it is written by a PhD chemist who spent his career leading and consulting with technology businesses. Its audience includes business folk who have an idea and a dream, but might lack a clear path to fulfill it. It targets bringing IP expertise inside of a company – and preferably among several people. The language is accessible and not highly legal. The short book can be quickly read. DiBiase makes clear that an expert does not need to read thousands of pages about this important topic to understand it well. This guide expands that understanding for smaller groups trying to rock the world.
Intellectual Property: A Handbook for Startups
By Stephen A. DiBiase
Copyright (c) 2016
Independently Published
ISBN13 9781523412969
Page Count: 114
Genre: Legal
www.amazon.com