Intellectual Property – A Must for Disruptive Innovation A disruptive innovation in business brings forth some unexplored possibilities and opportunities including new market access and strategic partnerships
By Ranjan Kumar
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Every entrepreneurial journey begins with an idea but what follows, is very different for everybody. Entrepreneurs rarely have dearth of business ideas but choosing the best one is a skill that develops over a course of time.
Some Entrepreneurs choose an idea based on by their past work experience, academic training, personality strengths and such. But for entrepreneurs that want to introduce a fundamental change in the ecosystem, their search for an innovation that can be disruptive in true sense, is a long drawn and difficult process. Reinventing the wheel is never easy and venturing out of one's comfort zone even while difficult is one of the most important traits of a successful entrepreneur.
A disruptive innovation in business brings forth some unexplored possibilities and opportunities including new market access and strategic partnerships. It interrupts the existing market by shifting market scenarios and displacing market-leading products and firms.
It is, therefore, even more critical to protect your idea as market readjusts itself accommodating it, catapulting its importance and leaving it vulnerable to plagiarism and theft from competitors whose market standing may have been toppled over.
Patenting and its importance
Intellectual Property rights are crucial for a truly innovative entrepreneur. When one conceptualizes and executes unique and disruptive ideas, patents guards the fruits of creativity against being exploited and used for commercial purposes by anyone other than themselves.
As a function of protection right, IP seeks to protect not only the new creations but also the existing ones. Thereby even the process of filing for a patent provides valuable information to entrepreneurs before they embark on a new journey, on whether someone has an IP on the work they plan to invest their time and effort in, preventing them from running into potential intellectual property disputes.
Why is IP hugely vital to entrepreneurs?
Owning an IP enables a startup to occupy a space with higher entry barrier, which provides it a competitive advantage, and allows it to grow at a pace faster than those without any IP rights.
Those who closely study the new age start-ups understand that IP is a major component of what makes some of them achieve success, gives the venture an edge over its competitors immediately after it takes off & establishes itself in the long run as well.
Patents implicate a greater significance in the startup ecosystem of a technology industry as the industry remains incredibly dynamic with new innovations and creations being churned out continuously. Investors are increasingly attaching a lot of value to patents. An IP can either make or break an investment decision for technology startups.
