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New Hampshire

Intellectual Property Protection

Success in a global economy depends more and more on intellectual property (IP) assets. In fact, IP-based businesses and entrepreneurs drive more economic growth in the United States than any other single sector.

Unfortunately, intellectual property has captured the attention of pirates and organized crime all over the world.

Did You Know...

  • Today, piracy, counterfeiting and the theft of intellectual property pose a serious threat to all U.S. businesses.
  • Industry estimates of the cost of such theft range from $250 billion to 750,000 jobs per year.
  • Research conducted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) indicates that only 15% of small businesses that do business overseas were aware that their IP protection in the U.S. does not travel - that is, that a U.S. patent or trademark provides protection only in the United States.

These threats to ongoing invention and innovation make it important to consider securing IP protection, whether you're a major multinational firm or a 1-person home business.

USPTO provides a great deal of information on their website about applying for protection, registering your product, and what type of IP protection you need - for more information, please click here.

STOPFAKES.gov/smallbusiness

The STOP! ("Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy") FAKES campaign focuses on small businesses, many of which are not as familiar with the process of protecting their intellectual property. 

STOPFAKES addresses the following common questions:

To help familiarize small businesses with IPR, the USPTO has launched this nationwide program to encourage small businesses to recognize and consider the benefits of strong IP protection, both domestically and abroad. Specifically, the USPTO wants businesses to know:

  • When to apply
  • What type of protection to apply for
  • Where to apply
  • How to apply

For more information, please click here.

IPR Toolkits

The U.S. Embassies abroad provide IPR Toolkits for companies to review as part of their research on a new market.  These toolkits address particular IPR concerns associated with a given country, in addition to providing information on where you need to go and who you need to contact to register and protect your IPR there.