Competitive Intelligence

In business, the old adage is adapted to be “you keep your friends close, but you keep your competitors even closer”.

There is an avalanche of information available today but how can you get quality information for the purpose of Competitive Intelligence? Part of the answer lies in the effective use of Patent Information.

Patent Information

Patent Information can be used to find out about the activity of your competitors before the information can be determined from other channels such as the media, web sites, financial filings and news releases. This is due to an inherent characteristic of the patent system that requires a company to file a patent before there is any public disclosure of their idea.

Using Patent Information, you can monitor the activity of your competitors over time in a systematic manner. The way to access this information is through Patent Search Tools.

Patent Search

There are many Patent Search tools available on the internet. These tools allow published patent applications and granted patents to be searched. By searching with competitor names or by combining key words and competitor names, you can perform your own basic analysis of your competitors.

It can be difficult to effectively perform a patent search. It is therefore recommended that you engage an expert in patent search. An expert in patent searching can not only help you effectively locate relevant patent data but also undertake analysis and present you with quality information for the purpose of Competitive Intelligence.