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Craige Thompson Interviewed on Peter McClellan Show

December 16, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Craige Thompson on Peter McClellan Show

How are patents impacting small businesses? Peter of The Peter McClellan Show sat down with Craige Thompson, Managing Principal at Thompson Patent Law Offices, to discuss how to succeed in the patent game. Inventors/entrepreneurs who spend significant time and money to develop an idea don't want their efforts to go to waste.  Peter asks Craige about getting some help to overcome challenges, and how to really profit from an invention that fills a need in the marketplace. Craige shares some stories that illustrate how litigation quality patents can generate more revenue faster for small businesses.  Craige also … [Read more...]

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Helping a Fireman Protect His Life-Saving Idea and Prepare It for Market

November 25, 2011 by Leave a Comment
New Business Minnesota October 2011

Originally published in New Business Minnesota, October 2011 All St. Paul firefighter Jovan Palmieri wanted to do was save lives. He had an invention in mind to do that. After talking to a number of patent attorneys, he was beginning to doubt he would ever reach his goal. Then he met Craige Thompson. Unlike the first attorneys he met with, Craige didn’t start talking about retainers and fees or inquiring about how much money he had, recalled Jovan. “He was interested and excited in what I had. I could see the wheels in his head turning, similar to what I was experiencing. He looked at what I had … [Read more...]

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Do You “Own” Your IP? Understanding the “Work Made for Hire” Doctrine

March 16, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Craige Thompson

Originally published in PD Clarity, January 2010 How much of the value of your company is in its IP (intellectual property)? Depending on what business you are in, the answer can range from “a little value” to “the most critical asset”, or somewhere in between. If you tend toward the “most critical asset” end of the spectrum, then the first IP protection issue for you to address is: Do you own your IP? To resolve this fundamental question of ownership, many business are unaware that they should pay special attention to the "work made for hire" issue in their dealings with independent contractors. … [Read more...]

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Sun Tzu’s Art of Waging War Against Patent Trolls

March 16, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Craige Thompson

Originally published in PD Clarity, January 2010 Patent trolls, many believe, lurk around looking for patents so they can sue businesses who actually do their own product development. Patent trolls, or non-manufacturing entities (NMEs), are companies in the business of buying patents to bring lawsuits and participate in YOUR hard-earned revenue. Now, some people find this objectionable- perhaps even enough to wage (legal) war against patent trolls. If this is your persuasion, or you want to learn more about strategies Sun Tzu might have used to beat a patent troll, then check out this article. This article is … [Read more...]

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Addressing Intellectual Property and Student Needs in Industry Collaborative Student Projects

March 15, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Craige Thompson

Proceedings of the 2010 ASEE North Midwest Sectional Conference, by Craige O. Thompson, JD, B.S.E.E, P.E. and William B. Hudson, Ph.D. Abstract Many engineering programs are encouraging collaborative student projects with industry sponsors. These joint or sponsored projects can benefit both students and sponsors providing real world experience for the students and low cost research or development opportunities for the sponsor. However, both sides must enter into these arrangements with open eyes and realistic expectations. This paper will explore the balance of interests among (i) students’ career advancement, … [Read more...]

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Protect Your Idea or Inventions with the Power of the Patent

January 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment
New Business Minnesota Jan 2011

Originally published in New Business Minnesota, January 2011 Securing Your Patent Rights Keeps Others from Stealing Your Work. Patent protection. Those two words may conjure vague notions of a mysterious document that somehow protects crown jewel innovations in your business. Indeed, patents do give their owners a right to exclude others from making, using, selling, or importing the patented invention within a particular country. You may own a patent that protects your business processes, but remember that your competitors can own such patents also. If your business involves technologies less than 20 years … [Read more...]

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Law and Patents; What Every Business Should Know

January 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Craige Thompson

Originally published in New Business Minnesota, November 2010. When you start your business, you may be entering the patent game whether you intend to or not. If your business involves any products or processes that are less than about 20 years old, there is a chance that some aspect of your business could infringe unexpired patents. If any of those patents belong to you, that is fantastic! Those patents are part of your “offense.” You control how, when and against whom they are used. They are a valuable asset to raise capital from investors or to generate license royalties. If any of those patents belong … [Read more...]

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Protect Your Ideas, Your Brand, Your Business

January 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment
New Business Minnesota Feb 2010

Don’t Make the Mistake of Not Securing Your Intellectual Property and Patent Rights. Originally published in New Business Minnesota, February 2010. How much of the value of your company is in its intellectual property (IP)? Depending on what business you are in, the answer can range from “some value” to “the most critical asset,” or somewhere in between. Every business should be able to answer this question. If you tend toward the “critical asset” end of the spectrum, then the first IP protection issue for you to address is: Do you even own your IP? Work Made for Hire To resolve this … [Read more...]

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