What Is Patent Landscaping?
Patent landscaping searches for intellectual property around a specific concept and assesses whether it presents an obstacle to successfully grant a new patent in the same space.
Description
This mapping of the intellectual property identifies the claims of competitive inventors and the scope of their coverage.
Purpose
This task indicates what can be used freely from the public domain, such as expired patents. The analysis also highlights potential partners who own adjacent or competitive intellectual property.
Advantage
A patent landscape analysis is a strategic element of a new product market launch. It helps understanding the business risks (infringement) and opportunities (partnerships) presented by the intellectual property.
Disadvantage
A landscape analysis does not report what areas give rights to commercialize. It identifes only where competitors have excluded others from making or selling a product. There may be additional obstacles to commercialization in the unclaimed space.
Expertise
Patent landscaping requires an understanding of patent law and is an art performed by patent agents, or patent attorneys.
