You might have already worked with an attorney when filing your patent, and you might have spent money on filing fees and other related charges when filing your patent, too. Now, you could be wondering if it's actually worth it for you to pay a patent management service to help you with managing your patent. You might think that these costs and these services are not worth it, but there's a good chance that you will find that they are, in fact, worth it for the following reasons and more.
You Might Have Already Invested a Lot
As mentioned above, there is a good chance that you have already invested a lot of money into your patent. Because of this, you probably don't want to lose all of the money that you have invested for nothing by simply losing your patent. Luckily, a patent management service can help you ensure that the money that you have already spent on your patent is worthwhile.
They're Often Not Too Expensive
Don't assume that all patent management services are expensive. In many cases, these companies charge a rather reasonable monthly or annual fee for their services. Costs should only really start to add up if you have a lot of different patents to keep track of.
You Could Face Fees
If you don't pay your maintenance fees and take care of other required steps in order to maintain your patent, then you could face fees and penalties. These can get quite expensive and can be quite a bit more costly than the cost of hiring a patent management service. Therefore, one of these companies might just help you save money in this way.
You Could Lose Your Patent
Depending on the idea that you filed a patent for, there is a good chance that you could stand to make a lot of money off of your idea. If you lose your patent, you could lose a lot of money in the long run, which is yet another reason why you may find that a patent management service is well worth the cost.
Your Time Is Probably Valuable
Of course, there is the option of managing your patent yourself. However, you should think about the amount of time that you will have to dedicate to learning about proper patent management and actually managing your patent yourself. If you're busy with inventing, running your business, or working your full-time job, there is a chance that your time is quite valuable. Because of this, you might find that it's worth it to hire a patent management service instead of putting in the work to manage the patent yourself.