PriorMark
IP Protection
Who It's For
Built for professionals who can't afford to be second
Whether you're running a lab, filing solo, or protecting a company secret, PriorMark gives you a permanent, court-admissible record of when your idea existed — without revealing it to anyone.
Trade Secret Holders
Your trade secret stays sealed. The proof doesn't have to.
Patents require public disclosure — and disclosure destroys trade secret protection. That's the core dilemma: the only way to prove ownership through conventional IP systems is to reveal the secret. PriorMark gives you a third path.
The Hedera ledger records a tamper-proof fingerprint of your submission, not the content itself. Your content is encrypted before storage and never publicly indexed or readable. If ownership is ever challenged, you produce the original — and any party can independently verify it matches the sealed record on the ledger, without premature disclosure.
Common scenarios
A food and beverage company's proprietary formula is challenged in court by a former employee who claims they invented it. The company's PriorMark record — timestamped before the employee's tenure ended — proves prior possession. Only the fingerprint is needed in the initial proceedings; the formula itself stays sealed until the company chooses to produce it.
A SaaS company's proprietary pricing algorithm is alleged to have been stolen by a departing executive who joins a competitor. The ledger record — predating the executive's departure — establishes that the algorithm existed and was protected before the alleged misappropriation occurred.
A manufacturing firm develops a production process that gives them a 30% cost advantage. Filing a patent would publish the process. Instead, they stamp it as each iteration matures, building a dated chain of possession that can be produced in any trade secret misappropriation proceeding.
How the protection works
Encrypted in transit and at rest
Content is encrypted with AES-256-GCM before storage — private, tamper-evident, and never readable by anyone, including us.
Fingerprint, not content
The Hedera ledger records only the SHA-3/512 hash of your submission. No content reaches the ledger. No disclosure is required to establish priority.
Produce on demand
If priority is challenged, produce the original. Any party can independently verify it matches the sealed ledger record — no third party required.
This is not a substitute for trade secret law compliance — reasonable measures to maintain secrecy (NDAs, access controls, internal policies) remain essential. PriorMark provides the timestamped proof of possession that complements those measures. In a misappropriation dispute, a dated ledger record combined with documented security practices creates a strong foundation for any proceeding. See legal context →
Startups
Protect IP you're not ready to patent — or never will be
Early-stage companies develop valuable IP constantly but can't afford to patent everything — or don't know yet what's worth filing. In the meantime, that IP is exposed: to competitors who reverse-engineer your product, employees who leave, and partners who sign NDAs but still talk. PriorMark locks in the date without requiring any public disclosure.
Common scenarios
A Series A startup builds a novel recommendation engine that powers their core product. Filing a patent would require disclosing the algorithm publicly — handing the blueprint to every competitor. Instead, they stamp it confidentially, preserving the date and keeping the trade secret intact while the product matures.
A SaaS company integrates a proprietary AI model before they're ready to engage patent counsel. They stamp it now, continue development, and bring in attorneys six months later — already holding a priority date that predates anything a competitor could file during that window.
A startup is acquired. During due diligence, the acquirer wants evidence that the company's core algorithm predates a competitor's similar product. The founders produce their PriorMark records — timestamped two years earlier — and close the deal without a legal battle over IP provenance.
How PriorMark helps
Protect before you decide
File or don't file — either way, your development date is locked. Optionality is valuable, especially early stage.
No public disclosure
Unlike a patent, your submission never becomes public. The ledger records the fingerprint. Content stays private.
Due diligence ready
Timestamped records make IP ownership conversations with acquirers, investors, and partners significantly cleaner.
R&D Teams
Build an auditable innovation trail — without disclosing to competitors
Lab notebooks get lost. Emails are editable. Internal wikis carry no timestamps a court will trust. When a patent dispute arises or a competitor files first, you need incontrovertible proof of when each development occurred — and it needs to predate any challenge by weeks, months, or years.
Common scenarios
A biotech team develops a novel compound synthesis route and stamps each weekly milestone before sharing results externally. Six months later, a competitor files a patent covering the same process. The team's ledger records — each predating the patent's priority date — provide a documented chain of development that can invalidate the claim.
A semiconductor engineering group stamps architectural designs before sending them to an external foundry partner for evaluation. If the partner later claims independent development, the ledger record proves otherwise.
A materials science lab tracks each iteration of a new polymer formulation. Rather than waiting until patent filing, they stamp every meaningful variant — building a timeline that proves the full scope of their work, not just the final version.
How PriorMark helps
Stamp every iteration
Not just the final version. Early concepts, working prototypes, and parameter results all deserve a timestamp — the earlier the better.
No disclosure required
The ledger records only the fingerprint of your submission. Competitors see nothing. Content stays private until you choose to reveal it.
Admissible chain of evidence
Each record links to the Hedera public ledger — independently verifiable by any party, in any jurisdiction, without going through us.
Independent Inventors
Lock in your priority date before you're ready to file
First-to-file patent systems mean timing is everything. An inventor who developed something months before a large corporation filed can lose the patent entirely — unless they can prove prior development with a dated record that no one can dispute. PriorMark creates that record the moment you submit.
Common scenarios
A software engineer develops a novel compression algorithm in their spare time. Six months later, a well-funded tech company files a patent covering the same approach. The engineer's PriorMark record — predating the patent's priority date — constitutes prior art that can invalidate the patent under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(1).
A mechanical engineer designs a new derailleur mechanism and stamps it, then takes 18 months to refine the prototype before filing. When a competitor files a similar patent during that window, the original stamp proves their priority date was established long before the competitor entered the space.
An inventor isn't sure yet whether their idea is worth a full patent filing. They stamp it now to preserve the date, then decide later. If they file, the ledger record supports their priority. If they don't file, it still prevents anyone else from successfully patenting the same idea.
How PriorMark helps
Priority before the patent
File today, refine for a year. Your ledger timestamp is your earliest provable date — even if the patent application comes much later.
Prior art on demand
A public ledger record predating a competitor's patent application is admissible prior art in US, EU, and Chinese patent proceedings.
Costs less than a consultation
One submission. No attorney fees, no provisional application overhead. A permanent record you control.
Ready to establish your priority date?
Takes about 60 seconds. No crypto knowledge required.