Lambert & Lambert is Gearing Up For Trade Shows in 2013 - CES, PGA, Toy Fair and More!

Minneapolis, MN.  Lambert & Lambert (http://www.lambertinvent.com) is gearing up for the 2013 trade show season.  The major shows coming up in next couple months are listed below, but for a comprehensive list, visit our website at http://lambertinvent.com/tradeshows.php.



International Consumer Electronic Show

Dates:  January 8-11, 2013
Location:  Las Vegas, NV
Overview: The CES is put on by the Consumer Electronics Association, which is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the $165 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry. It is the ultimate technology show with over 120,000 attendees last year.


PGA Merchandise Show

Dates:  January 23-26, 2013
Location: Orlando, FL
Overview:  The PGA Merchandise Show has evolved into comprehensive multi-purpose business platform since its roots in parking lots back in 1954. In addition to nearly 1000+ vendors representing every business sector of golf from market leaders to start-up companies.

 
International Toy Fair

Dates:  Feb 10-13, 2013
Location:  New York, NY
Overview:  Toy Fair is the largest international toy trade show in the Western Hemisphere where the newest and hottest products in the children's entertainment marketplace are exhibited.  It is the premier meeting place for manufacturers, retailers, importers, licensors and reps from around the world.


Have An Invention?

If you are an inventor and would like Lambert & Lambert to represent your product for marketing and licensing at one of these trade shows (or any others), visit our website or contact us to learn more. 


About Lambert & Lambert:
Lambert & Lambert is a contingency-fee based invention marketing and patent licensing firm that specializes in consumer products. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Lambert & Lambert provides services to inventors, product developers and small companies throughout the world and currently has products selling in numerous retailers.

Contact:
Tim Sherman, Director of Customer Service
Tel: 651-552-0080   |   Fax: 651-552-7678
info@lambertinvent.com

Links:
Lambert & Lambert Homepage   Lambert & Lambert Invention Blog
Lambert & Lambert on Facebook   Lambert & Lambert on Twitter 

Snatching Defeat From the Jaws of Victory: Cautionary Stories For Inventors

Part 3 of 3
By: Trevor Lambert, President

Moral of the Stories

As I look back at these and many other heartbreaking stories it is difficult not to get depressed and frustrated all over again.  However, my goal is not to paint all inventors as unreasonable, greedy prima donnas.  Rather, my hope is that these extreme cases of inventor mistakes will provide guidance for budding inventors on what to avoid.

When looking at these three stories, you should notice that none of the mistakes the inventors made had anything to do with the development of the product.  The patents were filed or issued, the prototype was well designed and the marketing message was on target; but still the deal did not go through.  In each case the mistake was more mental or emotional during the interaction with the licensee.

Over the years, I’ve noticed the volumes of available instruction for inventors on how to develop their invention, but very little can be found on what the inventor can expect when they engage in talks with the licensee.  In an attempt to fill that void, let me make a few observations that may provide some insight.

First and foremost, an inventor needs to realize that licensing requires a level of synergy between the company, invention and inventor.  The invention should fit in with the company’s product line and areas of distribution, and the two parties need to have a positive working relationship.  The company is considering entering into a long-term relationship to develop and market your invention and wants to be reassured that the inventor is stable.  It may be tempting for inventors to think the company is trying to steal or knock-off their invention, but resist that urge.  In all my years of pitching products I have found that the companies behind the recognized brands in any industry are usually very trustworthy.  Of course you should protect yourself by filing the patent, etc., but do not question their intentions or let suspicious thoughts cloud your judgment.

Secondly, it is critical that inventors realize that they are not negotiating a used car purchase.  The company on the other side of the table is composed of sophisticated professionals and thus any demand, term or condition should be backed with solid supporting data.  In particular, carefully consider what you are hoping for related to the royalty rate, minimum sales volumes and the advance.  Do not pull numbers out of the sky; rather perform market research so that your offer is within the range for that industry. 

Finally, remember that putting together these deals usually takes time – months not weeks.  Depending on how developed your product is, the company will be investing a large amount in tooling, engineering, packaging, marketing, inventory, etc., and they will likely want to consider the product carefully from a number of different angles.  They may ask you if they can pitch the product to some of their larger customers (or retailers) before licensing, or perform other due diligence, such as a focus group or prior art search.  This is a good sign so be patient, yet at the same time follow up and try to get the company to provide you with a timeline and benchmarks for putting the deal together.

In the end, remember the three-Ps.  Remain positive, professional and patient and you can avoid the self-inflicted heartbreaks that can happen to inventors.  If you do this the relationship with the licensee will be one of mutual-respect that will pave the way for a successful license deal.

 -----------------------------------------------

About Lambert & Lambert:
Lambert & Lambert is a contingency-fee based invention marketing and patent licensing firm that specializes in consumer products. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Lambert & Lambert provides services to inventors, product developers and small companies throughout the world and currently has products selling in numerous retailers.
Contact:
Tim Sherman, Director of Customer Service
Tel: 651-552-0080   |   Fax: 651-552-7678
info@lambertinvent.com

Links:
Lambert & Lambert Homepage   Lambert & Lambert Invention Blog
Lambert & Lambert on Facebook   Lambert & Lambert on Twitter

Snatching Defeat From the Jaws of Victory: Cautionary Stories For Inventors

Part 2 of 3
By: Trevor Lambert, President

Story #2 – Greed

We were representing an inventor who had invested about $25,000 in his new product.  After a trade show, XYZ Company expressed keen interest in licensing and wanted to move forward.  They had an extensive product line in Home Depot, Lowes, Ace and many other retailers and invited us to visit to explore putting together a deal.  Prior to the meeting I outlined some reasonable expectations for our client and he never questioned them.  At the meeting, the CEO, VPs and others were prepared to move forward and we reached consensus on many aspects of the agreement.  For some reason though, during a break in the meeting my client tells me that he now wants an advance of $750,000!  I tell him that with only $25,000 in development and no sales history, there is absolutely no way we can reasonably ask for this without threatening the deal entirely.  In the end he would only reduce the asking advance amount to $400,000 and told me to make the presentation. 

As you might expect, XYZ Company passes without even providing a counter offer.  Just like if someone made a ridiculous offer on your house, you would simply ignore it – and if they come back with a reasonable offer you would play hardball because their initial offer was insulting.  This is exactly the environment this inventor created with the license deal.  Instead of establishing a sense of mutual collaboration wherein the two parties choose to forge ahead in teamwork, our client’s greed killed what could have been a very good opportunity.

Story #3 – Haste

In this last instance, we were representing a new patented product in the hardware industry.  Trade shows were attended, a prototype was developed and we entered into substantive discussions with Acme Products, who had a very well-recognized brand.  They were eager to enter into the specific market segment of our client’s product, yet since they had no experience with licensing there was a bit of a learning curve required, thus creating some delays.  We were working with their attorney to craft an acceptable contract; however our client was growing impatient.

A couple months into negotiations with Acme, on a Friday our client calls me with a ridiculous demand.  He told me that Acme Products has two more weeks otherwise he is withdrawing the offer to license his patent.  I pleaded with him and cited evidence that proved Acme Products was operating in good faith and that the inertia of the deal was moving forward.  In the end he agreed to think about it over the weekend, but on Monday his opinion on the matter had not changed.  I asked if he could provide more time than two weeks and proposed many other more palatable solutions to move the deal forward, but he rejected them all.  With no other options and knowing I had to represent the wishes of our client, I was forced to make the call.

As with the past two stories, Acme Products chose to pass.  The artificial timeline was viewed as completely absurd and the president told me he did not want to enter into a contract with someone who would make irrational demands.

Click here to continued...

-----------------------------------------------

About Lambert & Lambert:
Lambert & Lambert is a contingency-fee based invention marketing and patent licensing firm that specializes in consumer products. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Lambert & Lambert provides services to inventors, product developers and small companies throughout the world and currently has products selling in numerous retailers.
Contact:
Tim Sherman, Director of Customer Service
Tel: 651-552-0080   |   Fax: 651-552-7678
info@lambertinvent.com

Links:
Lambert & Lambert Homepage   Lambert & Lambert Invention Blog
Lambert & Lambert on Facebook   Lambert & Lambert on Twitter

Snatching Defeat From the Jaws of Victory: Cautionary Stories For Inventors

Part 1 of 3

By Trevor Lambert, President

In the last decade I have had the great privilege to work with many independent inventors as they seek to commercialize their inventions.  Our company, Lambert & Lambert, represents technology owners seeking to license or sell their intellectual property rights by collaborating with companies well-positioned to sell the product and pay royalties to the inventor.

Over the years I’ve been able to see the inner workings of deals come to fruition, and others collapsing miserably.  No doubt we all know the path for inventors is an arduous one, paved with hurdles, set-backs and sometimes heartbreak.  However, sometimes those hurdles and set-backs are a product of the inventor’s own making.  By way of action, attitude or expectation, the inventor actually obstructs the deal from going through.  So in an effort to learn from past mistakes, let me share a few stories that may teach you what not to do.  The names, companies and products have been changed to protect the guilty.

Story #1 – Arrogance

A Fortune 500 (I’ll call ABC Corp) contacted us in search of technologies in fabric care.  Since we represent inventors, not companies in search of products, we performed a search and discovered a very unique technology developed by a small R&D firm on the east coast.  We convinced them to allow us to represent them and engaged ABC Corp to generate interest and set-up a meeting with all of their key staff and decision makers.

At the meeting our clients were asked to provide a technical overview of the product.  We prepped for the meeting extensively and so I was very comfortable with them making the presentation.  However, this is precisely when things began to unravel.  Rather than positioning their product as “highly complementary” to ABC Corp’s product line, they kept stating that their technology was “better” and went on to be outwardly negative toward ABC Corp’s technologies.  I was becoming embarrassed since the lead engineers were in attendance and visibly getting agitated by their comments.

The meeting went on for over two hours and we took a break to allow them to internally discuss what had been presented.  Not surprisingly they passed on the technology and the VP of the division mentioned to me afterward that he was surprised how arrogant they were.  They liked the technology but not the inventors.  Sadly, to this day the technology has not made it to the market.  Considering ABC Corp projected yearly sales of 250 million, the inventors are out a significant amount in royalties.

Click here to continue...

-----------------------------------------------

About Lambert & Lambert:
Lambert & Lambert is a contingency-fee based invention marketing and patent licensing firm that specializes in consumer products. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Lambert & Lambert provides services to inventors, product developers and small companies throughout the world and currently has products selling in numerous retailers.

Contact:
Tim Sherman, Director of Customer Service
Tel: 651-552-0080   |   Fax: 651-552-7678
info@lambertinvent.com

Links:
Lambert & Lambert Homepage   Lambert & Lambert Invention Blog
Lambert & Lambert on Facebook   Lambert & Lambert on Twitter

2012 CES Preview

The 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is kicking off next month at the Las Vegas Convention Center beginning January 10th through January 13th. The International CES is owned and produced by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), a trade association boasting over 2,000 member companies that works to promote industry growth in areas ranging from market research to technical training, industry promotion and business development. 

Highlights

Microsoft draws down

Microsoft announced that this year's CES will be the last show that the company will contribute to in a significant capacity. Microsoft will be delivering a keynote address this year for the fourteenth and last time, also withdrawing their commitment to a large booth beyond 2012, although they will still maintain a small presence in future shows. Speculations have been flying regarding the reason, including Microsoft demanding a lock on future keynote addresses and withdrawing from the show in retaliation for being denied. However, Microsoft maintains that CES's schedule doesn't mesh well with Microsoft's product release schedule, which typically lands in the third quarter of the year. Microsoft's lackluster showing at this past year's CES consisted mostly of products either outside of mainstream electronics or products that were already on the market, supporting their reason for withdrawing from the show as a lack of return on the significant investment.

CES premieres app developer event

This year the 2012 CES will feature the first presentation of the Developer University, a venue dedicated to developers to showcase their apps, APIs, platforms and SDKs to colleagues and potential investors. The Developer University will take place at the Las Vegas Convention Center on January 12 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. The event consists of consecutive 30 minute program presentations followed by a networking event for industry attendees. CES registration and an RSVP is required to attend this event. 

About Lambert & Lambert:
Lambert & Lambert is a contingency-fee based invention marketing and patent licensing firm that specializes in consumer products. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Lambert & Lambert provides services to inventors, product developers and small companies throughout the world and currently has products selling in numerous retailers.
Contact:
Tim Sherman, Director of Customer Service
Tel: 651-552-0080   |   Fax: 651-552-7678
info@lambertinvent.com

Links:
Lambert & Lambert Homepage   Lambert & Lambert Invention Blog
Lambert & Lambert on Facebook   Lambert & Lambert on Twitter

ITC Ruling Against Motorola

December 2011 - The International Trade Commission has issued an initial ruling in the patent dispute lodged against Motorola by Microsoft in October of 2010.

Microsoft has claimed that various Motorola products infringe on no less than nine patents currently held by Microsoft. In their initial ruling, the ITC has isolated one of the nine patents cited in Microsoft's complaint, determining that Motorola infringed on four separate claims of U.S. Patent no. 6,370,566, which consists of designs and systems that generate group scheduling and meeting requests on mobile devices.

Microsoft's Corporate Vice President and General Counsel David Howard issued a statement saying, "We are pleased with the ITC's initial determination finding Motorola violated four claims of a Microsoft patent. As Samsung, HTC, Acer and other companies have recognized, respecting others' intellectual property through licensing is the right path forward."

Recently the ITC issued an import ban on HTC products that it found to have infringed on patents currently held by Apple, and may choose to institute a similar ban on Motorola. Despite this, Motorola's General Counsel Scott Offer has stated, "We view it as a huge win" because Microsoft is "down to one patent." 

Among the Motorola products potentially affected by this ruling are the Motorola Droid, Atrix and Xoom, and the total number as reported by Microsoft itself stands at eighteen altogether. The ITC is expected to issue a final ruling after more review by the end of April, 2012. 


About Lambert & Lambert:
Lambert & Lambert is a contingency-fee based invention marketing and patent licensing firm that specializes in consumer products. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Lambert & Lambert provides services to inventors, product developers and small companies throughout the world and currently has products selling in numerous retailers.

Contact:
Tim Sherman, Director of Customer Service
Tel: 651-552-0080   |   Fax: 651-552-7678
info@lambertinvent.com

Links:
Lambert & Lambert Homepage   Lambert & Lambert Invention Blog
Lambert & Lambert on Facebook   Lambert & Lambert on Twitter

Buzzwords Inventors Should Stop Using

Inventors, like many others in the IP and product development industries, use buzzwords or clichéd phrases when presenting their product to a company or consumers. As a result of using buzzwords, some have become stale from their overuse or are just used incorrectly. Listed below are five words and phrases that inventors want to avoid using when describing their invention:

Revolutionary – Inventors want to avoid using this word, in any form, at all costs. Few inventions can be considered revolutionary, especially in present time. The cotton gin, printing press, personal computer, assembly line. These inventions were revolutionary, because they transformed the each of their industries conducted their business. It is difficult to say whether a product or invention is truly revolutionary at its current time. It is with time that an invention’s impact can be shown and gain the desired ‘revolutionary’ moniker.

EZ – It is a catchy slogan to simplify ‘easy’ into ‘EZ’. However, when presenting your product to a company for a licensing agreement, it is more beneficial to emphasize the qualities of your product than relying on a catchy slogan.

Million or Billion Dollar Industry – While it may be accurate when inventors say that an industry generates millions or billions of dollars in revenue per year, it is a gross generalization. Inventors should refrain from claiming that an industry produces a specific number of dollars, without citing a market research study. If an inventor just throws out a number to gain interest in his or her invention, it comes off as hyperbole, rather than a sound investment in a growing market.

Everyone will want one – This is a gross overstatement and a palatable generalization that every single consumer in a market will buy a product. There are multiple products in each industry that can accomplish the same solution. The goal of the product developer should be to identify the weaknesses in the current market and create a product that efficiently outperforms its competition. That doesn’t mean that every consumer will buy that single product due to brand loyalty, homemade devices, packaging, name recognition, performance, etc.

Everyone who has seen it, loves it – Sample Size. Sample size. Sample size. When discussing who has used and reviewed a new product, inventors need to be careful on who uses and how many people. The smaller the sample size, the more room for error in the feedback received. One other thing to keep in mind is that if the only feedback an inventor receives is from their family and/or friends, their reviews may not be the best gauge as to the licensability of the product. Those reviews come with a favorable bias.

Inventors and product developers are understandably excited about their product. They often try to sell a product seeker on the invention using phrases and clichéd buzzwords that deter interest from their product, most of the time unknowingly. To receive the best response when showcasing an invention, the product developer needs only to describe the invention and show, specifically, how it is a better product than those on the market. 

About Lambert & Lambert:
Lambert & Lambert is a contingency-fee based invention marketing and patent licensing firm that specializes in consumer products. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Lambert & Lambert provides services to inventors, product developers and small companies throughout the world and currently has products selling in numerous retailers.
Contact:
Tim Sherman, Director of Customer Service
Tel: 651-552-0080   |   Fax: 651-552-7678
info@lambertinvent.com

Links:
Lambert & Lambert Homepage   Lambert & Lambert Invention Blog
Lambert & Lambert on Facebook   Lambert & Lambert on Twitter