Hide and seek patenting - sometimes you hide what you are doing

When a technology startup meets a VC, there is a question guaranteed to crop up - is there any IP?

This means is there something we can patent......well in fact is there something that increases the barriers to entry of gives you a unique advantage..........or (if I am being cruel) are there any guarantees that I am going to make my money back as I hate losing money.
IP is a problem for some companies for a variety of reasons. They might be doing software (notoriously hard to patent in Europe) or they may just be combining things in a new way. However, it is not also obvious what to do when you have something to protect. The traditional route of filing and then daisy chaining filings around the world is fine but you do tip your hand to your competitors. Something to perhaps consider is just putting your code, designs etc. into escrow such that you can claim prior art later on if it becomes necessary.
© Copyright 2005 Richard A D Jones 2005