Can you market a product with just a provisional patent? How?

We advise our clients to be aggressively seek to evaluate the market for their technology once the Provisional Application is filed. Once the Provisional Application is filed, the product can be marked "Patent Pending" to advise competitors that you are seeking to protect any and all patent rights associated with this product. The competitors do not know whether you have filed a Provisional Application or a Patent Application. If it is a Patent Application, it could have been filed last week or it could have been filed 16 months ago and a Patent is about ready to issue. You cannot sue someone for infringing a Patent Application but need to wait for the Patent to issue. Nevertheless, a competitor will need to invest in manufacturing to build the product and advertising to promote the product not knowing when and/or if the rug will be pulled out from under him at any time. It's a risk many business people prefer not to make. Good luck!

A provisional application will usually cost less than a formal utility application - as no claims are required. The provisional application must teach how to make and use your invention - so that anyone skilled in the area of the invention can reproduce it. Once the provisional application is filed - you can state that your invention is "patent pending" and you can safely market the invention. NOTE - the provisional application expires one year after the filing date. Before expiration - you must convert the case to a formal utility filing. So you have little time to get the rest of the money you need. GOOD LUCK!

Yes, but you only have a year to submit the patent application after you place the product on the market. Also patent law changed a few years ago from "first to invent" to "first to file" in establishing who actually gets the patent for similar inventions.

Briefly,a prov pat will never issue...it is a 1 yr placeholder & you must file before the year ends. So priceeds may be unlikely.