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25,000 inventors per year for up to $10,000 per
year per inventor |
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FTC estimates that the number of victims is in
the TENS of thousands |
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Educate the inventor |
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Learn warning signs |
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Locate resources |
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Take control |
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Government support |
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Network |
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Learn the facts |
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Companies may be legal, but still unethical |
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Impossible task |
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False sense of security |
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Evaluation services |
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Honest self-assessment |
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Initial market data |
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Patent search |
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Manufacturing and design factors |
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Safety issues |
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Internet |
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Wisconsin Innovation Service Center, University
of Wisconsin, Whitewater |
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402 McCutchan |
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Whitewater, WI 53190
414-472-1365 |
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Washington State University Innovation
Assessment Center |
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2001 Sixth Avenue, Suite 2608 |
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Seattle, WA
98121 |
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206-464-5450 |
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WIN Innovation Center |
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College of Business Administration |
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Southwest Missouri State University |
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901 South National Avenue |
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Springfield, MO 65084-0089 |
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417-836-5667 or 417-836-5680 |
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Disinterested third party |
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Look for loopholes |
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Investigate with the FTC and State Attorney
General |
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Differences in types of Intellectual Property |
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Books |
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Marketing Your Invention, Thomas E Mosely, Jr. |
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Patent it Yourself, David Pressman |
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The Inventor’s Desktop Companion, Richard C Levy |
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Workshops |
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USPTO materials |
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Drew Edmondson |
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Attorney General of Oklahoma |
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Office of the Attorney General |
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State Capitol |
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Oklahoma City, OK 73105 |
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405-521-3921 |
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http://uiausa.com/ATTYGEN.htm |
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High upfront fees |
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Vague testimonials |
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Offer “one-stop” shopping for inventors |
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Offer Disclosure Document as some form of patent
protection |
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Their initial evaluation is completely positive,
not pointing out any product weaknesses |
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Are unwilling to provide names and addresses of
satisfied inventors |
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Refusal to quote a price range up front |
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Offers to review your invention, but refuses to
divulge details about criteria or evaluators. |
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Refuses to divulge its success and rejection
ratios |
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Assures you that your invention WILL make money |
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Pressures you for a quick decision |
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Has an FTC action against them |
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Chooses a patent attorney for you |
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Evaluates ideas and acts as licensing agent |
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Company implies you cannot do your own patent
search |
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Claims to have “special” connections to
industry, but refuses to specify how presentation of invention will take
place |
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Vague contracts |
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Hesitation to provide promises in writing |
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Has done business under various names |
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After initial fee, more money needed |
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Keep an accurate Log Book |
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Contracts |
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Notes |
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Names |
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Promises |
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Don’t be rushed |
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Discuss with outsiders |
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Be prepared to walk away |
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Complaint Division, Room 692 |
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FTC |
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Washington, DC 20582 |
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202-326-2222 |
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Jerry Steiner |
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San Francisco Regional Office |
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901 Market Street, Suite 570 |
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San Francisco, CA 94103 |
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415-356-5282 |
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Peter Lamberton |
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Bureau of Consumer Protection |
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202-356-5282 |
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http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/complaint.htm |
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http://www.uiausa.com/COMPLAINTBANK.htm |
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Oklahoma Inventors Congress |
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Other Inventors |
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Patent and Trademark Libraries |
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Internet |
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IAS |
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This is your invention |
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Must assume responsibility and control |
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http://www.inventorfraud.com/companyeval.htm |
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Get answers in writing |
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If you are not satisfied with answers, walk away |
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Know what you want from the process and be
realistic |
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|
|
Marketing Your Invention, Thomas E Mosely, Jr. |
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Patent it Yourself, David Pressman |
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The Inventor’s Desktop Companion, Richard C Levy |
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http://www.ftc.gov |
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http://www.uspto.gov |
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http://www.inventorfraud.com |
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http://www.inventnet.com |
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http://www.uiausa.com |
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Notes