Thread: Exlusive Rights
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Old October 20, 2011, 11:19 PM
Dien Rice Dien Rice is online now
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Join Date: Aug 2006
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Default Re: Exclusive Rights

Quote:
Originally Posted by RickC View Post
Has anyone on this forum obtained or tried to obtain the Exclusive Rights for any type of Consumer product? Exlusive Rights meaning a new marketing method for an existing product that the manufacturer isn't currently using?

How about the rights or idea for a new product by bringing two manufacturers together who have existing products that could be combined for something new? Like chocolate and peanut butter?

I ask this because, for quite some time, I have been combining two food items (each are well known and a healthy snack). I can't figure out why I cannot find these two great foods together in a can or bag.

This is definitely a Joe Cossman type of idea and I was wondering if anyone has taken this route to create a toll booth position?
Hi Rick,

I think the question would be, how would you protect your idea, to stop others from copying it?

I'm not sure an idea like that is easily protectable. So, it could be a good idea - but if you can't protect it, it makes it hard to make big money over the long term with it.

One way to protect it could be through a trademark, perhaps. Then you wouldn't be protecting the idea itself, but if the trademark became associated with the idea, it would be a kind of protection.

For example, you mentioned peanut butter and chocolate. There is no protection on that idea - anyone in the world can create a peanut butter and chocolate product without restriction. However, when you think "peanut butter and chocolate" - many people think "Reese's peanut butter cups" and associate the idea with a protected trademark. While you can create a peanut butter and chocolate product, you are not allowed to legally call your product "Reese's peanut butter cups"!

Anyway, some things are inherently easier to get a "toll position" in than others. This one seems a bit difficult to me, especially if you are not the manufacturer yourself.

If you manufactured it yourself, you could create a trademark, and associate your idea with the trademark. However, that doesn't always work to exclude others. (For example, note that Gatorade, which invented "sports drinks", was successfully copied by the Coca-Cola company with their "copy-cat" product "Powerade". The trademark "Gatorade" is still powerful, but it didn't stop a very powerful competitor from copying them, and taking a large chunk of their market.)

Best wishes,

Dien
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