How to Sell Patent Rights

Selling the rights to a patent, which excludes the manufacture and sale of certain inventions or designs, is a fairly common practice. By consulting with the resources available from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), you will be able to sell your patent with ease and confidence.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Computer with Internet access

Put Your Patent Up for Sale

1. Consider selling your patent through one of the many patent exchange or auction Web sites. Patents can even bought and sold on eBay (see Resources below).

2. Consult with a patent attorney or patent agent before you put your patent rights up for sale. A patent attorney will be able to advise you on the potential value of your patent, and whether it is a good time to sell.

Sell Your Patent Rights

3. Once you have located a buyer who is interested in your patent rights, assign all or part of your interest in the patent by carefully filling out a patent assignment form and filing it immediately with the USPTO. Assignment forms can be downloaded from the Web site of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or retrieved from any local USPTO office (see Resources below).

4. Make sure all of the filing fees are paid, and that you inform the buyer of the payment schedule for all of the maintenance fees. If you are the original patent owner or inventor, make sure your name remains on the patent for the benefit of the public and other potential buyers in the future.

5. Wait for confirmation by the USPTO that the licensing for the patent has been processed, which usually happens in less than three months. A patent attorney or agent, if you decide to use one, can usually verify all of the information for you.

Tips & Warnings

• Patent attorneys and patent agents have been specifically trained to guide inventors through the patent process. The United States Patent and Trademark Office maintains a registry of agents and attorneys on their Web site.
• Make sure that all maintenance fees are paid in full before attempting to sell your patent. Failure to pay these fees within the grace period allowed can cause the rights of the patent to be forfeited.

Who Can Help Sponsored

• How to Patent Your Idea Online - LegalZoom

[snoozcoon]

on 8/12/2009 how difficult is it for a patent owner to try and make contact with a big company name buyer for the possibility of getting them to review your invention?

[Patents]

on 11/24/2008 You can also list your patent on the the patent exchange on Patents.com. We work with many of the top corporations and companies who are active buyers of patents.
http://www.patents.com/IPExchange/Default.aspx

[davidsmithsv]

on 8/27/2008 Here's a detailed description of the process of selling a patent:

http://www.tynax.com/TTX1/Transactions-Patent-Sale-Guide.asp

[justchillnyo]

on 3/10/2008 You can also use a brokering serivce or firm. Intelledge.com advertises a no-risk program to market and sell patents, i believe.

[princetonwww]

on 1/21/2008 List your patents for free on http://www.princetonwww.com