When you have a patent on an invention or a product, you have the exclusive right to make and sell that product. You may decide to sell a license to another company, meaning that they can use your intellectual property. But if you don’t give the proper permission in advance, and another company decides to copy your design anyway, that is known as patent infringement.
There are two different ways that this can harm your company, and it’s important to understand how they work.
1. Loss of sales
To begin with, your company may start directly losing sales because of the knock-off products. Some consumers will buy these illegal products simply because they are cheaper. But other consumers may honestly think that they are purchasing products from your company when that’s not actually what they’re doing. They have been manipulated or deceived thanks to patent infringement.
2. Loss of reputation
Secondly, these products can harm your company’s reputation. For one thing, if they’re lower quality than the products you are actually making, consumers who believe they have bought authentic products will be underwhelmed. They may not even realize that they’ve been tricked, so it still affects your company’s reputation. Once the bad reviews start rolling in online or via word of mouth, the damage is done — and the negative perception may persist no matter what corrective action your company takes.
Taking legal action
If your business has experienced copyright infringement, it can be a very complex situation and you must know what legal steps to take. Contact an attorney about your patent needs.