Editing Patent (section)

===Alternatives===
A [[defensive publication]] is the act of publishing a detailed description of a new invention without patenting it, so as to establish [[prior art]] and public identification as the creator/originator of an invention, although a defensive publication can also be anonymous. A defensive publication prevents others from later being able to patent the invention.

A [[trade secret]] is information that is intentionally kept confidential and that provides a competitive advantage to its possessor. Trade secrets are protected by [[non-disclosure agreement]] and [[labour law]], each of which prevents information leaks such as [[Breach of confidence|breaches of confidentiality]] and [[industrial espionage]]. Compared to patents, the advantages of trade secrets are that the value of a trade secret continues until it is made public,<ref name="klinkert-6">{{cite conference |url=http://www.miplc.de/research/lecture-series/ |title=The Misappropriation of Trade Secrets in Germany and U.S. Discovery Aid |first=Friedrich |last=Klinkert |date=April 2012 |conference=[[Munich Intellectual Property Law Center|MIPLC]] Lecture Series |access-date=May 6, 2012 |page=6 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120608121247/http://www.miplc.de/research/lecture-series/ |archive-date=June 8, 2012 }}</ref> whereas a patent is only in force for a specified time, after which others may freely copy the invention; does not require payment of fees to governmental agencies or filing paperwork;<ref name="klinkert-6"/> has an immediate effect;<ref name="klinkert-6"/> and does not require any disclosure of information to the public.<ref name="klinkert-6"/> The key disadvantage of a trade secret is its vulnerability to [[reverse engineering]].<ref name="klinkert-7">{{cite conference |url=http://www.miplc.de/research/lecture-series/ |title=The Misappropriation of Trade Secrets in Germany and U.S. Discovery Aid |first=Friedrich |last=Klinkert |date=April 2012 |conference=[[Munich Intellectual Property Law Center|MIPLC]] Lecture Series |access-date=May 6, 2012 |page=7 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120608121247/http://www.miplc.de/research/lecture-series/ |archive-date=June 8, 2012 }}</ref>