WARNING:
Beware of unsolicited mail offering patent or trade registration services or requesting payment of fees by unofficial sources.
Occasionally, applicants are approached by entities purporting to offer or confirm patent or trade mark registration. Such entities may claim that your patent or trade mark has been accepted for registration upon payment of a sizeable fee. The offer or request usually takes the form of an official looking invoice or letter which is sent out after the publication of the application and can therefore contain details of a genuine application. Such ‘registration’ has no legal standing, and is of no value.
Such scammers often target applicants who are representing themselves in patent or trade mark proceedings. Should you be approached with such an offer of registration or a request for a fee payment, please verify the authenticity of the request before acting. You can contact the Patents Office, who will be happy to advise on the bona fides or otherwise of any requests.
The only offices which have authority to provide legal protection for patents, designs and trade marks in Ireland are the Irish Patents Office, the European Patent Office and the Community Trade Mark Office (formally known as the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market).
Examples of bogus requests have been published on the websites of :
The World Intellectual Property Organisation
http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/warning/pct_warning.htm
The Office for the Harmonisation of the Internal Market
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/CTM/feesPayment/warning.en.do
WARNING:
Invention promotion companies
There are a number of companies which advertise an TV, radio and/or the
internet which offer to promote and market inventions. These companies promise to
protect your invention, promote your product to other companies at tradeshows and
assist in negotiating licences for a fee.
While some reputable firms exist, there are a great many which will promise to evaluate your invention for a relatively small fee, then tell you that your invention
has great market potential. They may then offer to promote your invention to manufacturers subject to payment of a significantly larger fee of several thousand EURO. Once you have paid, they may do little or nothing for you or provide you with a lot of spurious documentation which may be of little practical value.
Contracting for the services of an invention promotion firm is no different to any other major financial transaction.
- Common sense should be applied and independent professional legal and financial advice should be sought.
- Always investigate the company and question their claims and assurances that your invention will make money and the extent of the service they propose to provide. Remember no one can guarantee the commercial success of an invention.
- Do not disclose details of your invention without a prior confidentiality agreement.
- If the company offers the services of a patent agent or patent attorney enquire if those persons are registered.