IP Resources on the Internet

Patent, Copyright & Trademark Acts (from Cornell Law School)

U.S. Government Resources

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Patents Main Page - links to other USPTO patent resources
Trademark Main Page - links for searching, filing, etc.
General Information Concerning Patents

Basic Facts about Trademarks
Current Notices of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
Official Gazette Notices
Patent Databases - images available for patents since 1790
Note: viewing or downloading images requires a browser plug-in.

Special Page for Business Methods Patents (TC2100)

U.S. Copyright Office Home Page
Copyright Publications from the Copyright Office
Intellectual Property Decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court

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International Intellectual Property Protection

National and International Patent Offices
Australia
Austria
Belgium (Ministry of Economic Affairs)
Canada - with Patent Search Database and Trademark Search Database
China
Czech Republic
Denmark
European Patent Office or (alt URL)
Finland
France (in French)
Germany
Hungary
Israel - Adin Liss Law Offices site
Italy
Japan
Jordan - website of Patent Attorney Eyad al-Sukhon
Lithuania
Luxembourg
New Zealand
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Singapore - alternate URL: http://www.epatents.gov.sg
Spain
Switzerland
United Kingdom
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
WIPO PCT Page
International Patent Search Resources:
SurfIP - from the Singapore Intellectual Property Office - search patents from US, PCT, EPO, Canada, Singapore, others
UK Patent Office - with link to EPO Espacenet - search many different countries, PCT
Canadian Patent Office Patents Database
List of standard numeric codes for information on printed patents (INID codes)
A links page to International IP websites compiled by European Patent Attorney Ralph Beier.

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Electronic Journals on the Internet

Berkeley Technology Law Journal from the University of California at Berkeley
Harvard Journal of Law and Technology
Richmond Journal of Law & Technology
Copyright and Fair Use at Stanford

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Marketing Links for Inventors: Manufacturers, Distributors, etc.

Thomas Register Supplier Finder - an online version of the famous manufacturers' directory.
MacRae's Blue Book - "America's Original Industrial Directory since 1893 - First published in 1893, MacRAE'S BLUE BOOK is now a leading on-line industrial directory and has just been re-designed to offer significantly more information than most other industrial directories, all free-of-charge."
The Central New York Technology Development Organization, Inc. - TDO is a Syracuse-based not-for-profit corporation, partially funded by the MEP and by Empire State Development through the New York State Science and Technology Foundation . Its mission is to accomplish economic development through the support of high tech and manufacturing entrepreneurs and businesses in Cayuga, Onondaga, Madison, Cortland, and Oswego counties.
Trade Easy International, an international trade organisation that specialises in putting suppliers and buyers together in a simple and efficient way. - an international trade web site with full products descriptions, product photos and company descriptions from 56 countries been put into specific classifications for easy search.

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Blogs and USENET Discussion Groups on Intellectual Property

Patently Obvious - one of the earliest, and best, blogs for news and information on patent law, from Dennis Crouch of the University of Missouri
Likelihood of Confusion - blog on trademark and copyright issues, from "IP maven" Ron Coleman.
TTABlog - reviews decisions of the Trademark Trial and Appeals Board (TTAB)
PHOSITA - blog on general US IP topics
IPKat - blog on IP issues from a European/UK perspective
Why didn't I think of that? - a Canadian IP blog
alt.inventors newsgroup: Especially for inventors (i.e. patent issues, rather than copyright or trademark). Like most of the Usenet, alt.inventors is not much used any more, and tends to be flooded with spam. Still, it can be useful and entertaining.
misc.int-property newsgroup: (Google Groups link) postings cover all forms of IP, especially copyright and trademark issues in software and the Internet. Again, more spam than useful, but could have an interesting post or two.

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Books we recommend:

Crackpot or Genius?: A Complete Guide to the Uncommon Art of Inventing
by Francis D. Reynolds
Chicago Review Press, 814 N. Franklin St., Chicago IL 60610
ISBN 1-55652-193-6
One of the best guides to inventions and inventing by an inventor with a background in corporate and private invention, consulting and teaching. As much a book on how to invent as it is on patenting, licensing, and so on. Has many examples of inventions and inventors, good and bad, valuable and silly.
Complete Idiot's Guide to Cashing in on Your Invention by Richard C. Levy - Quality Paperback, 384 pages, 7 1/2 x 9 inches Publisher: Alpha; ISBN: 0028642201; ©2002
- this book has replaced the Inventor's Desktop Companion by the same author. We haven't seen the new book, but said about the former one:
"A very good explanation of the various things any innovator needs to know. Not just patents, but trademarks, copyrights, licensing, prototyping, Federal programs and others. Written by a professional toy and game inventor."
Haven't actually read it, but this book seems like it could be interesting: "The Million-Dollar Idea in Everyone: Easy New Ways to Make Money from Your Interests, Insights, and Inventions" by Mike Collins

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Other Intellectual Property Websites

Kuesterlaw Technology Law Resource
Intellectual Property Owners (IPO) - "An Association Serving Owners Of Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, And Trade Secrets. "
Thomson CompuMark: originators of the Trademarkscan(r) databases, and a premier trademark and copyright searching firm (originally "Thomson & Thomson").
Franklin Pierce Law Center a law school specializing in Intellectual Property, among other things.
"Patently Absurd" UK patents.
The Copyright Website
Software Patent Institute
JurisNotes.com - a for-pay subscription service for court decisions in IP cases (two months subscription free). Website has a good free collection of basic IP statutes and treaties, links to off-site news articles, and back issues of the newsletter.
InnovaSafe offers a variety of technology protection services including: Source Code and Software Escrow; Intellectual Property and Technology Escrow; SEC Compliance Title 17 Protection; and Technical Verification Services

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Worthwhile IP Pages on specific topics...

Seeking Cost-Effective Patents - How to evaluate your invention in terms of patent protection. An essay by Thomas Field at the Franklin Pierce Law Center. Also see his papers entitled "So You Have an Idea," a guide to help independent inventors make an assessment of their situation, and "Converting Intellectual Assets into Property". He's also got very good pages on Trademarks and Copyrights.
Two articles on IP Protection of Computer Software from "developer.*", a web magazine for software developers:
"Seven Sins of Software Sellers: Common Mistakes In Protecting Intellectual Property" and "Intellectual Property Strategies for the Software Seller" both by Craig McCrohon
Cornell University Center for Technology, Enterprise and Commercialization - Information for Inventors page
Inventure Place is dedicated to the creative process. We're a museum - and more. Inventure Place is a laboratory where you can explore your curiosity and creativity. As our motto says, Inventure Place is where you will Discover the Inventor in you.
Patent Office Deputy Commissioner Michael K. Kirk's testimony about a recent bill to regulate Invention Marketing Companies.
Comments of the Chairman of the Intellectual Property Section of the ABA on how Invention Marketing Companies work.
Mark Twain's speech on copyright.
Look at some Weird and Wonderful Patents
We can't resist - have you seen Dilbert? The thinking engineer's comic strip.
Our Legal Research Page has these links, and many others.

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