Unified Startup Enablement & Growth Platform

Protect Your Secret Sauce — Build Moats That Last

IP Management is your insurance policy against imitation. It tracks every intellectual asset you own — patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets — and their protection status, expiry dates, and renewal timelines.

Investors care deeply about IP. A founder who can show "we filed 3 patents on our core algorithm" is more credible than one who says "we have proprietary tech" with nothing to show. This tool makes IP invisible risks visible.

IP Portfolio: Patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets all in one view
Filing Status: Which are registered, which are pending, which need filing
Renewal Timeline: Never miss an expiry date; automatic reminders
IP Value Scoring: Which assets are highest-value for investors
Global Strategy: File in US/EU now, India/APAC later based on market

IP Types and Why Each Matters

Type	What It Protects	Duration	Priority for Startups
Patent	Novel algorithms, methods, processes that solve problems in new ways	20 years (from filing)	HIGH if your tech is defensible. File early. Competitors will copy unless you have patent protection. Cost: ₹2–5L per patent (India). Can take 3–5 years to grant.
Trademark	Your brand name, logo, slogan	10 years (renewable forever)	CRITICAL. Do this first. Protects your brand identity. Easy and cheap. Cost: ₹5–20K. Takes 6–12 months.
Copyright	Your code, designs, content, creative work	Life + 70 years	MEDIUM. Automatic — you own it the moment you write it. Registration ($15 USD in US) adds legal evidence. Good for your UI/UX design.
Trade Secret	Internal algorithms, data models, customer lists, business processes	Forever (as long as secret)	CRITICAL for competitive advantage. Not registered — kept internal. Once exposed, protection disappears.

Patent Strategy for Startups

The Timing Question: When to File

Too Early: File before product-market fit, spend ₹5L on a patent for a feature nobody wants. Waste.
Too Late: Wait until Series B, but competitors already copy your idea. Too late — prior art defeats your patent.
Just Right: File when you have PMF and the idea is defensible (non-obvious, novel). Seed stage, right after you find traction.

Pro tip: Provisional patents (₹1–2L) buy you 12 months to assess patentability before committing to full patent (₹4–5L). Smart founders file provisional, see if competitors copy, then decide on full patent.

Global Filing Strategy

Phase 1 (Seed): File provisional in India (cheap, fast). File trademark everywhere (US, EU, India — ₹10–30K total).
Phase 2 (Series A): Convert Indian provisional to full patent. File PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) for global coverage. Cost: ₹20–30L but covers 150+ countries.
Phase 3 (Series B): File full patents in US, EU, China if your product is globally valuable.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I really need a patent?+

Not always. If your defensibility is speed-to-market (e.g., app development), patents are slow and expensive. If your defensibility is a novel algorithm, patents are critical. Ask: can a competitor copy your core tech in 6 months? If yes, get a patent. If no, it's less urgent.

What happens if someone copies my idea after I file a provisional patent?+

Provisional patent gives you legal standing to sue if they copy after you file. But enforcement is expensive (₹50–100L in legal fees). So provisional is more about giving you time to assess whether a full patent is worth it than about suing competitors.

Can I trademark my company name without registering the actual trademark?+

Registering is optional but critical. Without registration, you have common law rights (just by using it), but it's hard to enforce. With registration, you get legal proof of ownership and can sue counterfeiters. Cost is small relative to the value of your brand — get it registered.

How do I know if an idea is patentable?+

Ask a patent attorney. Rough rule: if it's novel (not done before) and non-obvious (not a trivial modification of existing ideas), it's patentable. But prior art searches can kill patents — sometimes someone filed something similar 10 years ago. Get expert advice before spending big money.

Key Takeaways for IP Management

Trade secrets are your most valuable asset — treat them as such

A patent is public (everyone can read your secret). Trade secrets stay secret forever. Your data model, algorithm, customer list — these are more valuable than a patent that's public anyway. Keep them internal. Fire anyone who leaks. Document who has access.

Trademarks first, patents second

Filing a trademark costs ₹5K and takes 6 months. Filing a patent costs ₹5L and takes 3 years. Most startups get the priority backwards. Get your brand locked down immediately. Patents can wait until you have capital.

Investors ask about patents in diligence — have a clear story

Don't say "we're going to file patents later." Have a filed (provisional is fine) patent and a clear strategy: why this technology is defensible, when you'll file full patents, which geographies matter. Vague IP strategy is a red flag.

Inside Corpfy IP Management

Corpfy IP Management is a comprehensive intellectual property register — covering patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, domain names, and design rights in one dashboard. India Patent Office filing timelines (provisional → complete application → examination → grant) are built in, along with open-source licence compliance tracking — often missed until a due diligence request surfaces it.

What you get in the dashboard

Feature	What it does	Founder benefit
Unified IP Register	Tracks every IP asset type: patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, domains, and design rights — with jurisdiction, filing date, status, expiry, and renewal cost	One complete IP register for due diligence — investors and acquirers ask for this; most startups scramble to assemble it
Renewal Calendar with Advance Alerts	30/60/90-day advance notifications per asset — no manual tracking required	IP lapses due to missed renewals are permanent and unrecoverable — automated alerts prevent the most avoidable IP loss
India Patent Office Filing Guide	Step-by-step: Provisional Application → Complete Specification (12 months) → Request for Examination → Grant — with Patent Office regional offices (Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata)	Most startups file provisional patents and then miss the 12-month complete application window — Corpfy tracks the conversion deadline
Open-Source Licence Compliance	Tracks which open-source libraries are used in the product, their licence type (MIT, GPL, Apache, AGPL), and compliance obligations	GPL and AGPL licences have copyleft obligations — non-compliance surfaces in due diligence as a material risk
Trade Secret Registry	Documents what is classified as trade secret, who has access, NDA coverage, and last access review date	Trade secret protection requires documented intent — without a registry, courts won't recognise protection claims