Patent Patrol: Blocking the Knockoff Invasion

Your U.S. patent is powerful at the border! Even if knockoffs are manufactured and sold freely overseas without you being able to do much about it, your patent gives you the power to stop them from entering the lucrative U.S. market.

The Power Move: You can record your granted U.S. patent (and trademark) with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Not all border patrol agents are sweeping through cities and suburbs nabbing people off the street and violently dragging them out of their cars. Some are doing the important job of protecting U.S. commerce from imported goods that violate U.S. patent, trademark, and copyright rights. CBP trains its officers to seize and detain the goods that violate your registered IP rights at the port of entry.

The Impact: This simple filing turns your legal document into an enforcement tool for customs agents, blocking the flow of counterfeit goods and protecting your market share without expensive lawsuits. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to catch every counterfeit product trying to come into the U.S., but it’s better than not even trying.