Archive for August, 2007
Hello, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with a second and final update regarding our end-of-week developments. Earlier Friday, interactive virtual reality presentations on four Invent-Tech inventor consumer electronics accessories were sent to the New York-based manufacturer that had expressed an interest in them through our West Coast-based industry partner that we have mentioned numerous times in this space. We had most recently reported on this situation and the origins of their interest in a July 31st entry (”Interest building in 5 computer accessories from the Invent-Tech roster…“).
As we’d explained at that time, the company had actually selected five items that our West Coast industry partner had reviewed with them, but one was later dropped as a subject of interest. Invent-Tech agreed to prepare specialized interactive virtual reality presentations on the other four product ideas for the company’s review, and these were rendered over the course of the last four weeks by skilled animators on Invent-Tech’s Visual Design Team.
We are certainly hopeful that the work put together, which looks terrific, will make a significant enough impression on this company and prompt to want to move their interest to the next level, but only time will tell. As soon as we are made aware of any new developments with this situation we will pass the details along, here on the Invent-Tech Network.
Join us for a Labor Day update on Monday!
August 31st, 2007
Hello, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with an update regarding our busy Friday before the long holiday weekend. Updating a situation we had most recently reported on in an August 23rd entry (”Update: Invent-Tech already working on initial Innovation Direct™package for bedding manufacturer…“), the Manufacturer Response Team member managing the Innovation Direct™ account of one of the world’s leading bedding manufacturers completed and sent the company their batch of product ideas from the Invent-Tech database on Friday. In all, preliminary, non-confidential informaiton on 10 items were sent.
We are hopeful of receiving word back on the company’s impressions of this material at some point during the week next week. As soon as any developments in this regard transpire we will bring them to you, here on the Invent-Tech Network. Stay tuned!
August 31st, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in one final time on a momentous Thursday. Earlier today, one of the members of the Manufacturer Response Team began to put together the initial Innovation Direct™ package for a California-based company that has a long and established history with the world’s leading auto makers and that had recently become acquainted with us after reviewing an Invent-Tech inventor product they had received a Manufacturer Introduction Package on.
The company, which licenses out a proprietary smoke vapor leak detection technology to virtually all of the world’s major car makers, is now seeking new automotive tool and equipment products for the first time in 12 years, according to what the president of the firm informed us of. He also assured us in his e-mail communications that he felt confident his company had the distribution network to successfully commercialize any automotive tool.
This company’s credentials and the president’s comments are certainly encouraging in and of themselves, and we were additionally pleased earlier today when our contact also requested that we sign a non-disclosure agreement at this point in time that can be kept on file, thereby enabling us to send access to the detailed design information on each invention from the onset. The Manufacturer Response Team member handling this company’s Innovation Direct™ account has already sent our contact the non-disclosure agreement for signature and has essentially selected the 10 items that will be included in the first package for them as well.
As soon as we have the executed guarantee of confidentiality, likely tomorrow, we will be able to place all of the pertinent information on these 10 inventions into this manufacturer’s hands. Needless to say, we are very hopeful of being able to bring you reports of licensing success in relation to this company in the future.
Join us tomorrow as we wrap up our terrific week!
August 30th, 2007
Good morning, Juan C. Blanco, checking back once again with another exciting update. We are extremely pleased to report that we have received a sample of the finished packaging for the Dust Stoppers invention, an item that Invent-Tech assisted in licensing back in March 2006.
The sample was sent by the licensee, an Alabama-based company that has been diligently working in conjunction with a member of Invent-Tech’s Visual Design Team on preparing this product for the market over the last 18 months. As we had reported the last time we mentioned the Dust Stoppers here on the Invent-Tech Network in a May 25th entry (”Invent-Tech receives request for packaging design assistance from licensee of Dust Stoppers invention…“), Invent-Tech had continued to play significant role in the development of this invention in the post-licensing phase at the request of the manufacturer, who enlisted a member of our Visual Design Team to assist with the design of the product packaging.
The photos above depict the final result of the exemplary work produced by our colleague here at Invent-Tech. We are equally pleased with the progress this product appears to be making toward successful commercialization and the fact that Invent-Tech played such an integral role in the overall appearance of the finished product. As we’ve stated here on the Invent-Tech Network previously, the nation’s preeminent inventor assistance firm strives to go above and beyond whenever possible in assisting the products that we represent achieve optimal levels of success!
Join us later in the day for more news!
August 30th, 2007
Good morning, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in early today with an update on a situation we’ve been following closely on the Invent-Tech Network the past several days. Late yesterday, we received the fully executed confidentiality agreement from the multi-million dollar infomercial company that we had most recently reported on in an August 28th entry (”Update: Invent-Tech receives word on confidentiality agreement status from Innovation Direct™infomercial company…“).
As a result, we were able to send the access to the invention websites for the 11 items that had been a part of their initial Innovation Direct™ package this morning to our contact at the company. They have informed us that a new product meeting will be taking place soon, wherein the Invent-Tech inventor products will be among the innovations discussed.
We anxiously await the results of their review and will certainly bring you all of the pertinent details, here on the Invent-Tech Network. Check back with us!
August 30th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with one final update on what was a busy Wednesday at the nation’s preeminent inventor assistance firm. We have finally received the prototype of a consumer electronics accessory that we had requested 3 weeks ago from the inventor, and we are preparing to send the unit the New York-based manufacturer that had expressed an interest in the invention through our West Coast-based industry partner. This is the same situation we had initially reported on in an August 9th entry (”Invent-Tech inventor consumer electronic accessory receiving significant interest from New York-based manufacturer…“).
As we’d explained in that posting, we had requested the prototype from the inventor pursuant to the request of the New York-based manufacturer. For some unknown reason, there was a slight delay on the inventor’s end in sending us the unit after we contacted him regarding it, but a follow-up phone call from the Manufacturer Response Team member handling this situation late last week apparently helped serve to propel him into action on the matter!
We are certainly eager to get the prototype, which is fully functional and has been utilized by the inventor himself for quite some time, into the hands of this company. We hope to be able to eventually report that their interest had culminated in a licensing agreement, but only time will tell.
In the meantime, check back with the Invent-Tech Network tomorrow for more exciting developments!
August 29th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with another Innovation Direct-related update. We are pleased to report that we will be meeting with the president of a hardware products company in our Innovation Direct™ program in person at our offices next Tuesday, September 4th. The meeting was requested by the company president that serves as our contact and was arranged earlier today. Incidentally, this is the same company that we had originally reported on in a May 22nd entry (”Invent-Tech contacted by hardware manufacturer with connections to multi-billion dollar retail giant…“).
As we’d explained in that post, the company had contacted us through a Manufacturer Web Sign-Up Portal on our website, www.invent-tech.com. A Manufacturer Response Team member had held an extensive conversation with the company president at that time, and the plan had been to send them their initial Innovation Direct™ package shortly thereafter.
Due to a variety of unforseen delays, the package was prepared approximately 2 weeks ago, but an attempt was first made by the Manufacturer Response Team member managing this company’s account to have them sign a non-disclosure agreement that we could keep on file, and that would enable us to send them the detailed design information on the product ideas directly. The company president responded to our request for a follow-up on this matter by informing us that his attorneys were reviewing the document before he signed it, and by also letting us know of his desire for a meeting. Since the company is located just a bit north of us in South Florida, we feel the meeting is a natural and potentially very productive step, and were very happy to agree to it.
Naturally, we will bring you a full update on the meeting after it transpires, here on the Invent-Tech Network. Check back with us for all the news!
August 29th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with a Wednesday evening update. Back in an August 15th entry (”Interest from leading Canadian manufacturer in Invent-Tech inventor industrial accessory rapidly gaining momentum…“), we had reported that a Canada-based company had expressed interest in learning more about Invent-Tech’s goals for an industrial accessory from our roster after they had reviewed the design details on it. We had not heard back from the company president since the Manufacturer Response Team member handling the situation had e-mailed him an explanation of Invent-Tech’s licensing objectives, so a follow-up was sent earlier today.
A response was received from the company late this morning, and the manufacturer requested the exact royalty percentage the inventor was seeking. We were able to communicate this information to the company president, and he explained that his plan before making a long-term decision on the product was to do some market surveys of his own customers at a trade show in Wisconsin that he was attending next month. As our contact specified, he will not be revealing any design information about the product, but rather, will be floating out a general inquiry regarding whether or not his customers feel there would be a need for a product that would solve the problem that this invention addresses.
We are enthused about the possibilities this opportunity may present, and certainly hope for the ultimate positive outcome. As always, we’ll keep you posted on any and all developments, here on the Invent-Tech Network. Check back frequently!
August 29th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with our third and final update for a busy Tuesday. Earlier today, we were able to successfully make contact with the principals of two companies we’d met at Licensing International 2007 back in June that had already been sent their initial Innovation Direct™ packages, but that we had not obtained closure from regarding those inventions.
The first manufacturer we are alluding to is the Canadian-based company that had requested information on barbeque, tool, and automotive accessories and that had already selected several items from their initial Innovation Direct™ package for further review several weeks ago. This is the same company we’d most recently reported on in an August 20th entry (”Update: Invent-Tech attempts further follow-ups with Licensing International 2007 leads…“). Earlier today, a telephone attempt was successful in directly reaching the company president, who apologized for not having returned the signed non-disclosure agreement that we’d sent him several weeks ago and that encompassed the inventions he had earmarked for further review. He requested that we resend him the non-disclosure via e-mail as he had lost track of the original correspondence from us that contained. We promptly complied with his request and although we still had not seen the signed document by day’s end, we are confident that we will soon be able to send this company the access to the detailed design information on the items they’d shown interest in.
The second company is the New York-based footwear and footwear accessories manufacturer that we had most recently reported on in a July 16th entry (”Update: Invent-Tech receives feedback from Licensing International 2007 lead on Innovation Direct™package sent…“). As we’d explained in that posting, the company had selected 1 item from their initial Innovation Direct™ package for further review and we had promptly sent them a non-disclosure agreement for signature in order to comply with their request for detailed design information. Subsequent to that, we had been informed by our contact that they were preparing for a trade show and would not get back to us until earlier this month. Since we had not received any word back from them, we placed a call earlier today to our contact, who likewise requested the non-disclosure be resent to him so that he could get it back in our hands. This request was complied with immediately, and we are hopeful of receiving the signed document by tomorrow.
Join us on Wednesday for all of the latest news!
August 28th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with a quick update regarding the latest on the confidentiality agreement we have been waiting on from the multi-million dollar infomercial company that recently joined our Innovation Direct™ program. This is the same situation we reported on most recently just yesterday (”Update: Sending of detailed design information on 11 Invent-Tech inventor products to infomercial company on hold pending fully executed confidentiality agreement…“).
We were able to make contact with the administrative assistant to our main contact at the company today, and were informed that the reason for the delay in the return of the agreement is that the senior attorney for their firm is out this week. As the administrative assistant also stated in her e-mail, she is now waiting to have someone else within the company who has authority to sign execute the document so they can return it to us. As we emphasized in yesterday’s post, as soon as the fully executed agreement is in hand, Invent-Tech will be sending the company access to the detailed design information on the 11 inventions that had been in their initial Innovation Direct™ package.
Stay tuned for updates to this situation!
August 28th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with another encouraging update regarding the recently licensed Tactical/EMS Leg Mate invention. As we’d explained a week ago in an August 21st entry (”Update: Invent-Tech receives photos of modified prototype of Tactical/EMS Leg Mate from licensee…“), the licensee of the product had made the modifications requested by the inventor and had sent us photos of the new prototype, which we had promptly passed on to the inventor.
We are pleased to report that we have received the inventor’s blessing on the new unit, giving the company the green light to move a step closer to full production. Additionally, this also allows Invent-Tech to pass along all of the final manufacturer specifications for the Tactical/EMS Leg Mate to the independent patent attorney that will be applying for the intellectual property protection on the invention. Pursuant to Invent-Tech’s agreement with the inventor, our company will be covering the full expense for this work.
We continue to be encouraged by the brisk pace of progress this invention is experiencing. Continue to join us here on the Invent-Tech Network for all the latest!
August 28th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with a brief update on a situation we had most recently reported on just last Friday (”Update: Invent-Tech receives non-disclosure agreement for review from multi-million dollar infomerical company; detailed design information to be sent out on 11 inventions Monday…“).
As we’d explained in that entry, we had received and reviewed the non-disclosure agreement utilized by a multi-million dollar infomercial company that had just joined our Innovation Direct™ program and found the terms to be perfectly acceptable for our usage. As we had indicated we would do, we promptly signed the document this morning and faxed it back to our contact at the company as had been instructed. However, as of this writing we have yet to receive a copy of the document signed by a representative of their firm and therefore, we have yet to send them access to the design details on the aforementioned 11 inventions from our roster.
We expect to receive the fully executed guarantee of confidentiality by tomorrow and if and when this happens, we will have the information on the items ready to send. Stay tuned to the Invent-Tech Network for future updates!
August 27th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with a Monday evening update. We kicked off the last week of August here at the nation’s preeminent inventor assistance firm with the preparation and sending of an Innovation Direct™ package to a California-based manufacturer of automotive tools. We have had some past experience with this company, as they were in touch with us last year regarding several inventions they had received a Manufacturer Introduction Package on.
The company became a part of our Innovation Direct™ program after contacting us late last week to inquire about receiving Invent-Tech inventor product ideas in groups on a regular basis. The preliminary, non-confidential information on the 10 items that were in this initial package was sent late this morning, so we are hopeful of receiving feedback from our contact at the firm by mid-week.
We certainly keep you posted on any developments with this situation here on the Invent-Tech Network. Check back frequently!
August 27th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with our final update for another productive week. A feminine hygiene accessory from the Invent-Tech roster, which had previously been the subject of an advanced level of interest from a Florida-based company, has now captured the eye of an Ohio-based manufacturer that specializes in various product categories. This is the same invention that we had most recently reported on in a May 14th entry (”Invent-Tech receives updates on tool invention, feminine hygiene accessory from manufacturers…“).
This current situation was initiated after the company received a Manufacturer Introduction Package on the invention and promptly requested more details. After executing the prerequisite non-disclosure agreement with Invent-Tech, the company was sent access to all of the detailed design information available on the invention earlier this week. In his reply to us, our contact at the company explained that he thought there could potentially be a market for the item, and indicated he would be getting back to us soon with more questions and/or an indication of what their next step would be.
We are enthused with how quickly this scenario appears to be evolving, and certainly hope we will be reporting on even more positive developments pertaining to it in the near future, but only time will tell. Join us on Monday when we kick off another exciting week!
August 24th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with a Friday evening update. Late this afternoon, we received a copy of the confidentiality agreement utilized by the multi-million dollar infomercial company that had just joined our Innovation Direct™ program earlier this month, and that we most recently reported on in an August 17th entry (”Update: Invent-Tech receives preliminary feedback on Innovation Direct™ package from multi-billion dollar infomercial company…“).
As we’d explained in that posting, the company had received their initial batch of preliminary, non-confidential information on 11 items from the Invent-Tech database and had let us know that they wanted to receive more details overall, as the material they’d read over did not give them enough to even pre-select which inventions would be of further interest. We came to the agreement that the best way to solve the issue would be for us to have a way to directly send them the detailed design information for each invention from the onset, something that could only be accomplished with having a non-disclosure agreement on file from the company. To this end, the company had agreed to provide us with their version of a mutual non-disclosure agreement, which was sent to us this afternoon via e-mail.
We are pleased to report that the agreement’s terms sufficiently protect the confidentiality of the inventions that we represent, meaning that the detailed design information on the aforementioned 11 items will be in the company’s hands as early as possible into the day on Monday.
We are enthused about the potential that an ongoing relationship with this company holds and will certainly bring you all of the news regarding it, here on the Invent-Tech Network. Check back often.
August 24th, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with our second and final update for Thursday. Updating a situation we initially reported on just yesterday (”Invent-Tech contacted by executive of largest bedding manufacturer in North America; initial relationship already established…“), the Manufacturer Response Team member that will manage the account of that manufacturer has already begun searches through the Invent-Tech database for the first package of items that will be sent.
This situation has been moving at an extremely brisk pace since its impromptu inception yesterday, and we are hopeful to have the initial batch of inventions in the company’s hands by the middle of next week at the latest. We will certainly keep you posted as to their impressions every step of the way, here on the Invent-Tech Network.
Join us tomorrow for our Friday wrap-up!
August 23rd, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in with our update for a Thursday evening. Earlier today, we sent an e-mail request for an update from our contact at the Canadian tool manufacturer that we had sent an initial Innovation Direct™ package to back in April, and that we had most recently reported on in a June 15th entry (”Update: Innovation Direct™ tool company still in initial stages of reviewing 12 Invent-Tech inventor product ideas…“).
As we’d explained in that posting, we had been periodically trying to check in with our contact at this company regarding the information we’d sent them and had yet to obtain any individualized feedback on the items sent. Unfortunately, today’s response did not bring any concrete information either. Our contact explained in his reply to us that they were “swamped” and asked if we would be willing to follow up again in approximately 3 weeks. We responded by letting him know that we would definitely be back in touch by the end of September if we had not heard from him first.
Occasionally we bring you updates such as this one, which on the surface might be considered mundane, in an effort to provide our readers with a realistic view of the daily happenings at Invent-Tech. Just as important, we also want to illustrate how attempting to bring a product to market can often be a journey replete with a variety of delays, procrastination, and sometimes, outright non-responsiveness. No one in this process is exempt from these type of obstacles, whether it’s the individual inventor or the nation’s preeminent inventor assistance firm, but the key is always to remain persistent and consistent in an attempt to obtain closure from a manufacturer!
Accordingly, we will continue to stay on top of this situation and will certainly bring you any and all updates here on the Invent-Tech Network. Check back with us!
August 23rd, 2007
Good afternoon once again, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with news of yet another industry leader getting in touch with Invent-Tech with the goal of establishing an ongoing relationship with our company. Earlier today, we received a contact through our website from the Director of Advanced Technology and Product Development for the largest bedding manufacturer in North America (as per their official website), who explained that his company was interested in receiving information on Invent-Tech inventor product ideas in various categories related to bedding.
We immediately replied, as we customarily do, with an overview of our confidentiality policies, as well as with an explanation that many of the product ideas that Invent-Tech represents are still in the conceptual or developmental stages. We ordinarily establish these facts immediately with a new contact, so as to provide them with the pertinent details of what working with Invent-Tech will entail. We were pleased to receive a reply shortly thereafter from our contact at this company informing us that they were amenable to working within the parameters we’d described.
Subsequent to that e-mail, the gentleman forwarded us his company’s mutual non-disclosure agreement for our review, and we found the terms to be more than sufficient for the adequate protection of our inventors’ ideas. Therefore, we have agreed that we will begin searching through the Invent-Tech database as soon as possible for items that match the categories they specified.
With a distribution network that, according to their official company website, boasts over 7,000 retailers alone, this company certainly offers a great deal of potentially prestigious opportunities as a part of our Innovation Direct™ program for a number of inventions on our roster. As this relationship evolves, we will bring you all the updates along the way, here on the Invent-Tech Network.
Check back frequently!
August 22nd, 2007
Good afternoon, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, checking in early today with our first update. We were pleased to receive an update via e-mail from one of the principals of the Michigan-based licensee of the Pop A Top invention, an item that Invent-Tech assisted in licensing back in October 2006. The licensing of the product was detailed further in our October 16th, 2006 entry here on the Invent-Tech Network (”Invent-Tech licenses Pop A Top to Michigan manufacturer“).
As per the e-mail received today, the licensee is in the process of shipping their first order of units, a batch that they have described as a test market of sorts. As also emphasized in their e-mail, their eventual goal is to ship between 4,000 and 5,000 units a month.
Undoubtedly, we are always pleased when we receive positive news regarding a previously licensed product, and certainly hope this modest start blossoms into much greater success for the Pop A Top in the future.
Stay tuned to the Invent-Tech Network for all the updates!
August 22nd, 2007
Good evening, Juan C. Blanco, Invent-Tech’s Director of Product Licensing, back with our final update for an eventful Tuesday. Earlier this afternoon, we received digital photos of the modified prototype of the Tactical/EMS Leg Mate, a professional medical accessory that Invent-Tech assisted in licensing back in July and that we had most recently reported on in a July 27th entry (”Update: Inventor of Tactical/EMS Leg Mate offers important feedback regarding prototype; Invent-Tech in communication with licensee…“).
As we’d explained in that posting, we had forwarded the physical prototype that the licensee of the product had sent us to the inventor, who was very pleased with it overall but who also pointed out that there was one important modification that needed to be made regarding its size. The licensee had assured both the inventor and Invent-Tech that this would not be an issue and true to their word, they have already completed the necessary work.
We were pleased with the photos received and forwarded them to the inventor via e-mail earlier today. We now await his feedback and if there are no further changes, we likely will be forwarding all of the pertinent details of the Tactical/EMS Leg Mate to the independent patent attorney who will be preparing the patent application on the product.
Join us tomorrow for more news!
August 21st, 2007
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