QUESTION
Is there a way to protect a business whose profitability arises from the originality of their business model instead of a patentable technology?
Asked on Feb 28th, 2012 on Intellectual Property - Illinois
More details to this question:
Websites like twitter, Facebook, foursquare, netflix, groupon and the like operate a standard business that can be easily duplicated but can be hard to infringe upon due to their dedicated client base.
I.E. Anyone can come in and make another website that does exactly what Facebook does, or netflix, but they may not have as much success because people are already using existing established business''s.
I would like to create a website that taps into an untapped portion of the social market. My business does not have a technology, like googles search engine, rather it is a novel idea that can become widespread if properly implemented.
During the infancy of this business, is there ANY way to prevent copy cats from copying my business model?
In this business it''s simple. First one to the top tends to stay there.
1 ANSWER
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As a general matter, the only way to keep competitors from copying your business model is to keep the model itself a secret. In theory, you could disclose the model only to people who have agreed in advance to retain it in confidence and not to disclose it or make commercial use of it. This obviously won't work with a mass social service, but it might work with something small until you can get some scale. You'll need to consult with an IP attorney about it in any event, which you should do sooner rather than later.
Answered on Feb 29th, 2012 at 11:34 AM