Zoe Chen, PhD, Patent Agent
An experienced IP Agent & Licensing Professional with over 10 years of practical experience.
email: zoechen@citysideventures.com
Ph. 248.236.7005 Ext. 706
Our IP Services Include:
IP Assessment
Assessing a company’s IP portfolio is an important for investors and companies who might acquire your technology. Think of it as a pre-purchase home inspection: a buyer wants to make a well-informed investment and be aware of any issues. Similarly, for any business, the first step to creating an IP portfolio, is to perform an IP Assessment: If you do not recognize IP, you cannot protect it.
IP Strategy
While your company has already developed all kinds of plans – business plans, marketing plans… – do you have a plan to protect your brand or technology? With our insider perspective, our goal is formulate an IP strategy which will prioritize protection of the IP assets. A piecemeal approach to IP protection (i.e., no strategy) always costs more than anticipated, and protects less than expected.
IP Monitoring
Acquiring format IP rights is only the initial step, but by no means least, in the process of protecting the assets, that creates the most of your brand business value. Are you ready to monitor and end instances of infringement of your TM? The process requires vigilance, tools, and knowledge of how to remedy the situation. We offer monitoring and enforcement services to protect your IP
Trademarks™
Startups frequently adopt TM/SM which are difficult to protect. An early clearance search is vital to discover any confusingly similar TM/SM before investing resources in developing your brand. Since a valid trademark can be sold or licensed, filing TM/SM application helps creating immediate brand value. The definition of branding is evolving: Amazon is trying to trademark the blue glow of Alexa…and our team offers solutions tailored to a startup’s branding initiatives.
© Copyrights
Copyrights are the “unsung heroes” of IP protection. A copyright fights infringement more effectively than its IP counterparts. It is inexpensive legal protection of original images, webpages, industrial designs etc. Formal registration is required to notify platforms, such as Amazon, if an infringement (for example, of packaging design) has occurred in order to take counterfeiters down. We can identify copyrightable elements and register them.
PATENTS
As investors, we frequently see companies that spend large amounts on patents and others spend nothing. Normally, both of these decisions are a mistake. Remember that a patentable product doesn’t necessarily mean you have a marketable product. We start the process, without breaking the bank, by a patentability search, keeping you from filing worthless patents, and only filing enforceable patents.