How to start a new fantasy football idea

[fanfootballtn 33]

I have an idea that I've been thinking about for years and I am asking for some advice on how to patent it. Does anyone know how to patent a fantasy football idea? If this is a violation of the "help" rule, please forgive me Mike.

[Phurfur 70]

I have an idea that I've been thinking about for years and I am asking for some advice on how to patent it. Does anyone know how to patent a fantasy football idea? If this is a violation of the "help" rule, please forgive me Mike.

 

 

I am not sure about this but the way I understand it is that patents protect inventions or products; the idea is only the first step in that process and cannot be protected without something tangible.

[T-HO 1]

The first step is to go to uspto dot gov and do a relevant searcg for similar products to ensure your not stealing someone's idea. There's a category for stuff before and after 1976;you'd probably need only search after 76 imo. Create a file and copy and paste any relevant patents you find(you'll need these later). BTW I'm not a lawyer or anything, but as an independant inventor who had an idea which I went so far as to show many at the 2009 summer FSTA trade meeting, I have dome alot of reasearch on both patents as well as the fantasy indusrty. Patents can be issued for both tangible things( a mousetrap), as well as methods(for tying a knot), as well as processes and chemical formulas(coca-cola or kfs 11 original herbs etc). About dot com has a good array of beginner info on the topic. The patent office, especially the examiner who will be reviewing your idea adhere to a list of rules they reference before granting a patent. It must be new, novel, and useful. You have to search and incule all PRIOR ART(very important):This says -here's what it kind of looks like, but not exactly, which makes it new-Unfortunately, sometimes any combination of prior ideas when combined may actually make it so that you are denied a patent. Fear not, though, as one can appeal this process, and can still sell your item as patent pending. Ok what does that mean?

-Once you offer an item for sale, show it at a trade show, or sell it even at a garage sale or flea market, you have one year to file for a patent. If you don't, you lose your idea. For around 100.00 you can file for a provisional patent application which contains all of the main elements of the patent without the actual claim. Again be forwarned, as a)you have to include a drawing and description which b)has to match and cannot be any different than what you actually turn in when you file for the real patent. There are programs like patent pro which are useful in guiding you through the process if you attempt to do it on your own. The whole patent application itself has to read like instructions so that any person skilled in the art can re-create your ides from scratch using what you've given them. Even after your patent has been filed, there is an 18 month wating period for your ides to be examined. Legally you cannot stop anyone in that time from copying and/or profiting from your idea. Another big problem seems to be that there's no way anyone is going to want something they've 1-never seen before which you 2- can't tell anyone about before in fear it may be stolen. How complicated it is, the ease of use for the common person, the cost to manufacture it and what to charge the average joe(again, how/why are they going to pay for something they've never seen)-There's also the psychology of selling ,how easy a website is to navigate, getiing them to buy once they have been introduced to the idea. Basically you get 8 of every 100 people to buy anything you sell, so how will it be marketed? Hopefully once you've gotten to a finished product, the various viral marketing vehicles like youtube, twitter, and facebook make today the best time in history to announce anything to the whole world at once.

Some costs to consider:

-Computer graphic designers charge 60.00 per hour, so be sure you know exactly what it is they'll be designing for you. Some websites can easily top 10 grand.

-Patent lawers charge 125.00 per hour, so the cheapest route is to do research on how to write a patent, start writing,buy a do-it-yourself program and format each section the way the uspto wants it(they are very picky about margins, the type of paper and ink to use for drawings, labeling with numbers, etc)

-The application itself costs 750.00

 

Hopefully this was helpful. I'm pretty sure you can contact me using fftoday when you click on my username. I go by the name of tommythesandwich, and like most I have a corresponding email at yahoo you can also use to contact me for additional help. My story ended when I ran out of money for my idea, which was scrapped in favor of a different easier to understand paper version I have on file ready to copy I use to help prepare for my leagues. It is a method for understanding large sets of data for every team both as the year progresses as well as over a span of years. The data is displayed using colors much like the weather channel does with temperatures, so as to gain an instant understanding of where every team has been statistically which will assist the human brain with assessing where they are headed. I have used it since 2005 in many forms where I usually won or placed with great success since then. There is a more detailed description in my usernanme history past messages which explains exactly what it is/does.

 

HTH and goog luck!!

[Super Cubs 156]

so what's your idea?

[T-HO 1]

When i have a little more time I'll add more details. But basically it tracks how all 32 teams change throughout a season by visually displaying 8 main stats(total offense-rushing and passing-points for-total defense-vs the run vs the pass and points allowed) for each team every week. I write down the opponent ,score, and whether they won or lost. Instead of writing down the actual number of where that team is in every one of those categories, I use colored pens/crayons and write down the corresponding color(32/8= 8 colors on a warm to cool scale like weather maps display temperatures on the US map). Since most of the 1 trillion bit memory capability of the human brain is dedicated to shapes and colors, I can easily "see" each team as a season progresses based on how I remember what the colors look like, which correspond to that teams relative strength or weakness in those 8 stats explained above. This allows me to better assess 1-which players to pick/avoid from each team 2-which players to pick up and 3-which to drop. Those 8 stats for every team(along with won loss record) are also visually displayed over a span of 3 years to get an idea of where that team is headed based on where they have been. At any point in a season anyone can see how a team is ranked, say 16th in total offense. However, that doesn't actually tell the story of a team like ariz w/Kurt warner where they would be 1st in passing, and last in rushing.

 

I pick players who score more points and avoid those who don't.

It allows me to know WSIS since I now know exactly where every team is at any point in the season

I avoid relying on OPI(other people's information)

 

Basically, if you were on a desert island, and every week the sunday paper came down on a parachute with those numbers, and you could make one phone call to vegas, wouldn't that be all one would need to bet on football? There is IMO a point of diminishing return when there is so much information available these days. Decide on what you need to know to make the best decisions, then study that information. Statistics like those described are available every week on espn or many other websites.

 

For me it's simplifying and deciding WHAT information you should be looking at, assesing that information, drawing conclusions from it, then making decisions which lead to drafting teams with players who score points, winning championships, beating your chest before saying ha-ha i'm better than you to your friends, taking their money and using it to get a nice lap dance in south florida(that's what I do, anyway). Some say it's too much. Others say it takes too much time. The way I see it it's 2-3 hours a week and I'm done. I can tell any fan of every team at any point in a season where their team is without using anything else but my brain. The problem for everyone else in the world is that it's unfortunately not available at this time for public consumption. I may attempt to sell an all paper version on ebay this summer with a box of crayons and instructions as a tool for grade school students to learn mathmatic funtions while they play fantasy football. If it gets to that point and those in charge here at fftoday are ok with it i'll post a msg if/when that occurs. For now send me a personal note if your really interested and i'll get in touch with you as to how one can do this on their own/send you a free copy.

 

Hope this helped those wondering. For even nerdier types, check out google patents and type in patent number 5021976. Specifically look at just how many references to visual display graphic information displays are mentioned. Thanks and good luck to all this year!

[Portis26 0]

Legal Zoom .com

[fanfootballtn 33]

This was more than helpful! Man do I appreciate what you have wrote. I've already made a mistake by sharing it with a co-worker and he shared it with a few of his friends. They got excited about the idea. It's more of an idea than an invention but it would generate millions of people signing up. Do you think it is wise to present the idea to Yahoo, ESPN or the NFL since they already have a fantasy football format? All I need to do is present the idea and rules and they can take it from they and have it running in a month's time. Guys, the idea is really awesome and it would change the game of fantasy football forever.

 

The first step is to go to uspto dot gov and do a relevant searcg for similar products to ensure your not stealing someone's idea. There's a category for stuff before and after 1976;you'd probably need only search after 76 imo. Create a file and copy and paste any relevant patents you find(you'll need these later). BTW I'm not a lawyer or anything, but as an independant inventor who had an idea which I went so far as to show many at the 2009 summer FSTA trade meeting, I have dome alot of reasearch on both patents as well as the fantasy indusrty. Patents can be issued for both tangible things( a mousetrap), as well as methods(for tying a knot), as well as processes and chemical formulas(coca-cola or kfs 11 original herbs etc). About dot com has a good array of beginner info on the topic. The patent office, especially the examiner who will be reviewing your idea adhere to a list of rules they reference before granting a patent. It must be new, novel, and useful. You have to search and incule all PRIOR ART(very important):This says -here's what it kind of looks like, but not exactly, which makes it new-Unfortunately, sometimes any combination of prior ideas when combined may actually make it so that you are denied a patent. Fear not, though, as one can appeal this process, and can still sell your item as patent pending. Ok what does that mean?

-Once you offer an item for sale, show it at a trade show, or sell it even at a garage sale or flea market, you have one year to file for a patent. If you don't, you lose your idea. For around 100.00 you can file for a provisional patent application which contains all of the main elements of the patent without the actual claim. Again be forwarned, as a)you have to include a drawing and description which b)has to match and cannot be any different than what you actually turn in when you file for the real patent. There are programs like patent pro which are useful in guiding you through the process if you attempt to do it on your own. The whole patent application itself has to read like instructions so that any person skilled in the art can re-create your ides from scratch using what you've given them. Even after your patent has been filed, there is an 18 month wating period for your ides to be examined. Legally you cannot stop anyone in that time from copying and/or profiting from your idea. Another big problem seems to be that there's no way anyone is going to want something they've 1-never seen before which you 2- can't tell anyone about before in fear it may be stolen. How complicated it is, the ease of use for the common person, the cost to manufacture it and what to charge the average joe(again, how/why are they going to pay for something they've never seen)-There's also the psychology of selling ,how easy a website is to navigate, getiing them to buy once they have been introduced to the idea. Basically you get 8 of every 100 people to buy anything you sell, so how will it be marketed? Hopefully once you've gotten to a finished product, the various viral marketing vehicles like youtube, twitter, and facebook make today the best time in history to announce anything to the whole world at once.

Some costs to consider:

-Computer graphic designers charge 60.00 per hour, so be sure you know exactly what it is they'll be designing for you. Some websites can easily top 10 grand.

-Patent lawers charge 125.00 per hour, so the cheapest route is to do research on how to write a patent, start writing,buy a do-it-yourself program and format each section the way the uspto wants it(they are very picky about margins, the type of paper and ink to use for drawings, labeling with numbers, etc)

-The application itself costs 750.00

 

Hopefully this was helpful. I'm pretty sure you can contact me using fftoday when you click on my username. I go by the name of tommythesandwich, and like most I have a corresponding email at yahoo you can also use to contact me for additional help. My story ended when I ran out of money for my idea, which was scrapped in favor of a different easier to understand paper version I have on file ready to copy I use to help prepare for my leagues. It is a method for understanding large sets of data for every team both as the year progresses as well as over a span of years. The data is displayed using colors much like the weather channel does with temperatures, so as to gain an instant understanding of where every team has been statistically which will assist the human brain with assessing where they are headed. I have used it since 2005 in many forms where I usually won or placed with great success since then. There is a more detailed description in my usernanme history past messages which explains exactly what it is/does.

 

HTH and goog luck!!

[Fantasy Noob 10]

You might also look into copyright and trade mark laws. I think the trade mark is for names and all you need to do is add the TM behind an offical name, I dont think it extends to intellectual ideas. I think copyright is your best bet simply because that is used by writers and your idea would seem to fall more inline with that avenue.

 

Patents are expensive to write and require real specialized knowledge. Patent law is real tricky, you need to be able to prove that someone else couldnt have figured it out without common sense knowledge in that particular industry. Also writing a patent allows people to see your idea and try to "reverse engineer" it and get around it this happens all the time. You could spend a lot of money and still get bypassed. Don't try to write a patent yourself unless you are a lawyer or extremely skilled technical writer this is a big no no.

 

Do NOT go to a big organization with your idea you will get TROUNCED they have large legal departments and will steal your idea and then tie you up for years in court. GE is infamous for patenting other peoples ideas and then sueing them over the work they created.

 

If it is that good an idea you should look into setting up your own website to host FF games under your format, setting up the website could be expensive but once it is up the cost will be minimal. "Angel" level investing is best for you here too. Most major cities have a small group of "Angel" investors usually lawyers, high level execs, and wealthy inventors that fund small startups. It is almost ridiculously easy to get several hundred thousand in startup capital at this level. Venture capital is big firms and they will throw around several million dollars but almost always seize control of your company and idea, so generally these guys are to be avoided if any other option is available.

 

Good luck.

[Gepetto 1,472]

The first step is to go to uspto dot gov and do a relevant searcg for similar products to ensure your not stealing someone's idea. There's a category for stuff before and after 1976;you'd probably need only search after 76 imo. Create a file and copy and paste any relevant patents you find(you'll need these later). BTW I'm not a lawyer or anything, but as an independant inventor who had an idea which I went so far as to show many at the 2009 summer FSTA trade meeting, I have dome alot of reasearch on both patents as well as the fantasy indusrty. Patents can be issued for both tangible things( a mousetrap), as well as methods(for tying a knot), as well as processes and chemical formulas(coca-cola or kfs 11 original herbs etc). About dot com has a good array of beginner info on the topic. The patent office, especially the examiner who will be reviewing your idea adhere to a list of rules they reference before granting a patent. It must be new, novel, and useful. You have to search and incule all PRIOR ART(very important):This says -here's what it kind of looks like, but not exactly, which makes it new-Unfortunately, sometimes any combination of prior ideas when combined may actually make it so that you are denied a patent. Fear not, though, as one can appeal this process, and can still sell your item as patent pending. Ok what does that mean?

-Once you offer an item for sale, show it at a trade show, or sell it even at a garage sale or flea market, you have one year to file for a patent. If you don't, you lose your idea. For around 100.00 you can file for a provisional patent application which contains all of the main elements of the patent without the actual claim. Again be forwarned, as a)you have to include a drawing and description which b)has to match and cannot be any different than what you actually turn in when you file for the real patent. There are programs like patent pro which are useful in guiding you through the process if you attempt to do it on your own. The whole patent application itself has to read like instructions so that any person skilled in the art can re-create your ides from scratch using what you've given them. Even after your patent has been filed, there is an 18 month wating period for your ides to be examined. Legally you cannot stop anyone in that time from copying and/or profiting from your idea. Another big problem seems to be that there's no way anyone is going to want something they've 1-never seen before which you 2- can't tell anyone about before in fear it may be stolen. How complicated it is, the ease of use for the common person, the cost to manufacture it and what to charge the average joe(again, how/why are they going to pay for something they've never seen)-There's also the psychology of selling ,how easy a website is to navigate, getiing them to buy once they have been introduced to the idea. Basically you get 8 of every 100 people to buy anything you sell, so how will it be marketed? Hopefully once you've gotten to a finished product, the various viral marketing vehicles like youtube, twitter, and facebook make today the best time in history to announce anything to the whole world at once.

Some costs to consider:

-Computer graphic designers charge 60.00 per hour, so be sure you know exactly what it is they'll be designing for you. Some websites can easily top 10 grand.

-Patent lawers charge 125.00 per hour, so the cheapest route is to do research on how to write a patent, start writing,buy a do-it-yourself program and format each section the way the uspto wants it(they are very picky about margins, the type of paper and ink to use for drawings, labeling with numbers, etc)

-The application itself costs 750.00

 

Hopefully this was helpful. I'm pretty sure you can contact me using fftoday when you click on my username. I go by the name of tommythesandwich, and like most I have a corresponding email at yahoo you can also use to contact me for additional help. My story ended when I ran out of money for my idea, which was scrapped in favor of a different easier to understand paper version I have on file ready to copy I use to help prepare for my leagues. It is a method for understanding large sets of data for every team both as the year progresses as well as over a span of years. The data is displayed using colors much like the weather channel does with temperatures, so as to gain an instant understanding of where every team has been statistically which will assist the human brain with assessing where they are headed. I have used it since 2005 in many forms where I usually won or placed with great success since then. There is a more detailed description in my usernanme history past messages which explains exactly what it is/does.

 

HTH and goog luck!!

 

Does the teams you refer to, mean NFL teams or indivual's fantasy football league teams?

[Gepetto 1,472]

This was more than helpful! Man do I appreciate what you have wrote. I've already made a mistake by sharing it with a co-worker and he shared it with a few of his friends. They got excited about the idea. It's more of an idea than an invention but it would generate millions of people signing up. Do you think it is wise to present the idea to Yahoo, ESPN or the NFL since they already have a fantasy football format? All I need to do is present the idea and rules and they can take it from they and have it running in a month's time. Guys, the idea is really awesome and it would change the game of fantasy football forever.

 

You need to get your patent first before talking to yahoo, espn, or the nfl. Be careful.

[fanfootballtn 33]

You guys are awesome. All of the comments have been very helpful. Gepetto and Fantasy Noob, you guys are right about taking the idea to larger companies. I think they would push me out of the picture really quick and have my idea running within weeks of my first meeting. I even thought about approaching facebook but sometimes when you are already established, they have no need for you. I like the idea of starting my own site and getting the TM behind the names. I didn't know what the legal ramifications of using the names of NFL players without the permission of the NFL. One thing is for sure, I am going to let FFToday advertise on it for free.

[Fantasy Noob 10]

One thing to avoid is using anything with the title "Superbowl" in it. If you notice alot of bars advertise parties as "The Big Game". This is because the NFL actually has a patent/trademark rights to the name Superbowl and they aggresively go after low level people that use the name. They know these smaller businesses dont have the time and money to fight with them in court on the issue.

 

"Anything that comes into common usage of the Enlish language loses copyright/trademark rights." Its a loophole that no one has fought the NFL on over the name SuperBowl, but there is legal precedent to go after the NFL if they try to sue on the grounds of their rights to this paticular name.

 

But not in your best interest as a small business owner to fight with the NFL on this level at.

[Fantasy Noob 10]

There is a cool documentory on Rotisserie Baseball on ESPN, I think it is one of the 30 for 30 documentaries about the rise of Fantasy Baseball in the mid 80s. There was this small group that were the first and tried to patent their idea and called it rotisserie Baseball. They actively fought to stop other Fantasy Baseball leagues from forming forcing them to subscribe to their service (it was all by mail if I remember the documentary right).

 

Anyways long and short of it is they failed, the other sites changed their name to Fantasy Baseball since Rotisserie was protected and tweaked some rules and went ahead. There ended up being too many for the Rotisserie league to fight and they lost their rights to the game. I would look for this documentary on Youtube and hope to get some ideas.

 

 

I wonder if your best bet is to open a sight get a patent/copyright going and not spend too much fighting with other groups if they rip you off but go after them for "licensing fees".

[Phurfur 70]

This was more than helpful! Man do I appreciate what you have wrote. I've already made a mistake by sharing it with a co-worker and he shared it with a few of his friends. They got excited about the idea. It's more of an idea than an invention but it would generate millions of people signing up. Do you think it is wise to present the idea to Yahoo, ESPN or the NFL since they already have a fantasy football format? All I need to do is present the idea and rules and they can take it from they and have it running in a month's time. Guys, the idea is really awesome and it would change the game of fantasy football forever.

 

 

Why do I want FF to change forever?

[PackYourNut 47]

Just an FYI, but you cant patent software or the like. That's why there are dozens of word processors, spreadsheets, web browsers etc.

 

Your best bet is to build it up and sell it... I certainly wouldn't tell any major players about it before hand.

[fanfootballtn 33]

Why do I want FF to change forever?

My idea is similar to adding the 3 point line to the game of basketball.

[Fantasy Noob 10]

Your giving more points to kickers aren't you!

 

Just kidding.

[Phurfur 70]

My idea is similar to adding the 3 point line to the game of basketball.

 

Well then I don't see much monitary value here. A software company might bite but there are thousands of different rules for fantasy leagues and people pick and choose what they like.

 

How much money did the guy who thought of points per reception get?

 

Good luck and I hope you make some money off of your idea.

[IGotWorms 4,063]

You cannot patent information.

 

The real key to making money off this idea would be to set up your own site and establish your site as THE place to go for this kind of information BEFORE other sites get wise and start copying it. At that point you might be able to sell the rights to your website to another company, thereby making money.

[fanfootballtn 33]

You cannot patent information.

 

The real key to making money off this idea would be to set up your own site and establish your site as THE place to go for this kind of information BEFORE other sites get wise and start copying it. At that point you might be able to sell the rights to your website to another company, thereby making money.