A patent is a government license that gives the holder exclusive rights to a process, design or new invention for a designated period of time. Applications for patents are usually handled by a government agency. In the U.S. the United States Patent and Trademark Office handles application and documentation. In the United States most patents are valid for 20 years. By granting the right to produce a new product without fear of competition, patents provide incentive for companies or individuals to continue developing innovative new products or services. For example pharmaceutical companies spend large sums on research and development and patents are essential to earning a profit. A patent is a government license that gives the holder exclusive rights to a process, design or new invention for a designated period of time. Applications for patents are usually handled by a government agency. In the U.S. the United States Patent and In the United States most patents are valid for 20 years. By granting the right to produce a new product without fear of competition, patents provide incentive for companies or individuals to continue developing innovative new products or services. For example pharmaceutical companies spend large sums on Learn about Johnson & Johnson and its financial ratios, such as operating margin, return on invested capital (ROIC) and capital outlays as a percent of sales. Learn how to license your ideas to get your groundbreaking product on the shelves without raising capital or having business expertise. Learn about the PowerShares Dynamic Pharmaceuticals exchange-traded fund, which specializes on investing in pharmaceutical companies. Discover the three main divisions the Monsanto Company has created through years of successful innovations and acquisitions of various agricultural companies. Read about the eight wealthiest people living in Japan, a group of mostly self-made billionaires whose net worths ranges from $21.1 billion to $4.4 billion. Discover the history of three of Russia’s most successful and well-known entrepreneurs, including their educational backgrounds and entrepreneurial efforts. Obtain company information about some of the largest major legal firms that are headquartered and have principal operations in Canada. Learn why Google has been the target of an anti-trust investigation by the Federal Trade Commission as well as a civil penalty for privacy issues. Learn some interesting facts about Amazon.com Incorporated, the history behind Amazon’s name and the hidden services and technologies that Amazon offers. Learn what parameters are required for a market to exhibit perfect competition and how perfect competition is more of a theory … Find out how Apple’s mission statement has changed from Steve Jobs’ original mission statement. Jobs saw Apple products as … Learn why companies such as GoPro, Samsung, Tesla and cable providers stand to lose market share to Apple’s latest product … Discover the process by which brand name drugs lose their patent, allowing generics to be manufactured, as well as the differences … Make better investment choices by discovering the difference between biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, including … Since Tim Cook took control of Apple in 2011, the company has taken a different approach to product releases, expansion and … Learn more about the drug industry and how new drugs are brought to market. Find out about how drug research is financed … The major differences between a monopoly and an oligopoly include the number of firms in the market, type of barriers to … Explore Apple’s competitive position in the many industries in which it operates. Learn about the different products and … A measure of a company’s value, often used as an alternative to straightforward market capitalization. Enterprise value is … The application or redirection of principles of traditional venture capital financing to achieve philanthropic endeavors. A round of financing where investors purchase stock from a company at a lower valuation than the valuation placed upon the … Money laundering is the process of creating the appearance that large amounts of money obtained from serious crimes, such … Source.