Objective: To assess if a product can be launched in the market without potentially infringing upon claims of any “Active Patent”
Freedom to operate patent searches is done before the launching of the product in the market to check if it is safe to launch a product/service in the market. The objective of such a search is to uncover ACTIVE PATENTS that may obstruct the successful launching of the product. This search is also called Clearance Search or Right to Use Search.
The FTO search therefore, is conducted to determine whether a product, if launched, in a specific jurisdiction would infringe upon any patent within the same jurisdiction. This kind of search is typically conducted by searching active and live patents that could map on the features of the product/service and thereby pose a barrier for the product to operate in that particular jurisdiction.
While conducting such a search, our team develops an in-depth understanding of the product features, and, thereafter conducts a detailed search for identifying active patents that map on to the product features. The claims of the identified active patents or PCT patent applications are then analyzed for potential infringement by the product features.
For further details / sample reports, please contact us.