Posts Tagged ‘start-up’
Should You Follow the Advice of this Start-up if Approached with a Demand Letter by a So-Called ‘Patent Troll’?
Tech Crunch published an interesting commentary today written by Chris Hulls, Chief Executive Officer of Life360, in which Mr. Hulls shares his story of taking on a patent troll and urges other start-ups to do the same. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Life360 patent case, Ars Technica recently published an article…
Read MorePractical Tips on Choosing your Start-Up’s Name
Given my Silicon Valley location, I often am consulted by entrepreneurs and start-ups who have just started a business and are seeking advice on how to protect their trademarks. However, more often than not, I quickly determine that the name that the entrepreneur or start-up has selected is a poor mark and my advice ends…
Read MoreChallenges of Negotiating a Licensing Deal with a Start-Up
I recently gave a webinar on Negotiating License Agreements with Start-Ups, and wanted to follow up on that program with some comments for Silicon Valley IP Licensing Law Blog readers on some of the challenges that companies may face when negotiating an IP licensing deal with a start-up. In the years that I have worked…
Read MoreSuccessfully Managing Intellectual Property Disputes as an Early-Stage Start-up
TechCrunch posted an article this afternoon written by attorney David Soofian, which caught my attention, addressing the issue of what to do as a young start-up if you are sued for patent infringement. In particular, the article addressed the challenges posed by so-called patent trolls, who use “weak patents to go after young tech…
Read MoreWhat does Patent Reform mean for Silicon Valley Entrepreneurs?
The recent passage of the long-awaited Patent Reform bill was heralded by many around the country as great accomplishment; however, the bill was not without controversy, particularly in the Silicon Valley, where many who work with start-ups and tech companies expressed concern about the new legislation. In my recent blog posting on the California Biotech…
Read MoreHow Does an Entrepreneur Protect His or Her Ideas for Launching a New Start-Up?
When an entrepreneur calls me with questions about launching a new start-up, he or she is inevitably concerned about a single issue: protecting his or her ideas. Most are a little disappointed to learn that ideas alone are not something that you can protect with an IP filing. So, if ideas alone are not protectable,…
Read MoreTrying to Save Money with Do-It-Yourself Trademark Filings? How to Avoid Creating a More Expensive Headache for Yourself
I have been working with a number of start-ups in this recession tried to save money by filing their own trademarks, and ultimately ended up creating a more expensive headache for themselves because of mistakes they made in the application. If your start-up is one of those businesses that is trying to cut corners in…
Read MoreNew Start-Ups Should Consider Collaboration Agreement as Alternative to Equity Agreement
Given my Silicon Valley location, I often receive calls from start-ups who want to “give equity” to a developer that they’ve just started working with. When I receive these calls, I inevitably have a talk with the client or prospective client urging them to consider an alternative: entering into a collaboration agreement with the developer…
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