Why Publish on IPWatchdog?

For more than 25 years, IPWatchdog.com has been a leading destination for intellectual property news, analysis, and thought leadership. Since launching in 1999, we have built extraordinary visibility and credibility throughout the intellectual property community.

Articles published on IPWatchdog are frequently indexed by major search engines, including Google, within hours of publication. And because our articles are never placed behind a paywall, contributors benefit from broad and lasting exposure to the audiences they most want to reach.

Every article published on IPWatchdog.com benefits from built-in amplification through:

• Indexing on major search platforms
• Promotion on LinkedIn and our team’s professional networks
• Inclusion in the IPWatchdog Daily Email Newsletter

With nearly 1.1 million unique visitors in 2024 alone, IPWatchdog.com is where industry leaders come to stay informed and where contributors are seen.

Publishing with IPWatchdog allows authors to build authority, enhance credibility, contribute to important industry conversations, and reach an influential intellectual property audience.

Who May Publish on IPWatchdog?

IPWatchdog publishes contributions from members of the intellectual property community whose experience, expertise, and perspectives are relevant to our professional readership.

Priority publishing opportunities are available to:

• Industry thought leaders, including current and former judges and government officials
• In-house counsel participating in IPWatchdog programs and events
• Authors affiliated with law firms and organizations that qualify for publishing access through their relationship with IPWatchdog
• Other contributors specifically invited or approved by IPWatchdog’s editorial team

All submissions are subject to editorial review. Eligibility to submit an article does not guarantee that any particular article will be accepted or published.

Article Submissions

IPWatchdog publishes high-quality articles from subject matter experts in all areas of intellectual property, innovation, technology, and the business of IP. To maintain the quality and credibility of our content, all submissions are reviewed by our Editor-in-Chief and must satisfy IPWatchdog’s editorial standards.

Articles must be:

• Non-commercial and professionally relevant. We welcome substantive analysis and thought leadership, not advertorials or promotional pieces.
• Relevant to the IPWatchdog audience. Our readership includes private practice attorneys, in-house counsel, judges, policymakers, government officials, executives, scientists, innovators, and other key intellectual property stakeholders.
• Original and factually accurate. Articles must not have been previously published online and must be legally and factually correct.
• Substantive and informative. Articles should provide analysis, perspective, information, or insight that will be valuable to our professional readership.
• Supported by facts. Opinion pieces are welcome, but opinions and conclusions should be supported by relevant facts, authority, or analysis.

The viewpoints expressed by contributors remain entirely those of the author. Agreement with IPWatchdog’s editorial team is not required. Relevance, accuracy, substance, and value to our audience are what matter.

We Encourage Topic Proposals Before You Write

Before preparing an article, we strongly encourage contributors to submit a proposed topic to editors@ipwatchdog.com.

Please include a proposed title or brief description of the subject you intend to address.

Advance topic approval helps ensure that:

• The proposed subject is appropriate for the IPWatchdog audience
• The topic has not recently been covered from substantially the same perspective
• Another contributor is not already preparing an article addressing the same issue

We also recommend searching IPWatchdog.com before proposing a topic.

Please note: Topic approval does not guarantee publication of the completed article. All completed submissions remain subject to editorial review.

Contribution Guidelines

If your topic proposal is approved, please make sure your completed article satisfies the following requirements before submitting it.

Format and Length

• Articles should be submitted as a Microsoft Word document.
• Articles should be thoroughly copy edited before submission.
• Authors who are not native English speakers should have their article professionally edited by a native English speaker before submitting.
• Articles should be a minimum of approximately 600 words.
• We generally prefer articles in the 800 to 1,500 word range.
• Articles ordinarily should not exceed approximately 2,000 words. Longer works may occasionally be divided into a series when appropriate.

Substance

• Articles should be coherent, interesting, informative, and relevant to IPWatchdog’s professional audience
• Articles should have a clear and cohesive beginning, middle, and end
• Address intellectual property, innovation, technology, the business of IP, or another subject directly relevant to our readership
• Articles Must be factual and legally accurate
• Clearly distinguish opinion from fact
• Support opinions and conclusions with appropriate factual or legal authority
• Avoid commercial promotion, sales pitches, or marketing copy

Authors should generally not write about matters in which they are directly involved unless the article is expressly presented as an opinion piece and the author’s involvement is appropriately disclosed.

Originality and Exclusivity

• Articles submitted to IPWatchdog must be original works that have not previously been published online.
• Authors retain copyright in their work, but IPWatchdog requires online exclusivity for articles we publish.

If you would like to reference the article elsewhere after publication, you may republish a short introductory excerpt and link readers to the complete article on IPWatchdog.com.

Links, Citations and Footnotes

IPWatchdog does not accept traditional footnotes or endnotes for online articles.

Instead:

• Include citations and source references within the article
• Provide hyperlinks to cases, statutes, reports, studies, companies, products, or other referenced materials where appropriate
• Clearly identify the words or phrases that should be linked

Embedded links make articles easier to read and allow readers to access supporting materials immediately.

Images and Graphics

If an article includes figures, charts, photographs, or other graphics:

• Submit the image files separately rather than embedding them solely within the Word document
• Preferred formats include JPG and PNG
• The author must have permission or appropriate copyright authorization for any image or graphic submitted for publication

Titles

Authors are encouraged to suggest a title, but the final title is determined by IPWatchdog’s editorial team.

Titles are particularly important for online readership and search visibility. We may revise a proposed title to improve clarity, reader interest, search performance, or accuracy.

Author Information

Please provide:

• A short professional biography
• Firm, company, or organization name
• Website URL
• LinkedIn profile URL
• Any other relevant professional social-media URLs
• A professional headshot, preferably at least 300 pixels square with the author’s face centered in the image

Editorial Review and Revisions

Once an article has been submitted and moved through the editorial process, IPWatchdog may make minor edits for grammar, clarity, readability, style, formatting, or search optimization without returning the article to the author for approval.

Authors will generally be contacted when substantive revisions or significant factual changes are necessary.

Please do not continually submit revised versions after an article has entered the editorial process. If a crucial change becomes necessary, identify the revision clearly using tracked changes.

Once an article has been published, only minor corrections or revisions ordinarily will be made. We do not undertake wholesale rewrites or substantial post-publication revisions.

Please Obtain Internal Approval Before Submitting

Do not submit an article to IPWatchdog until you have received all necessary approval or clearance from your firm, company, organization, or client.

Once an article has been approved through our editorial process and scheduled for publication, it may not be possible to withdraw the article.

Publication Timing

IPWatchdog cannot guarantee publication of any article, even when a topic has previously been approved.

We also cannot guarantee publication by a particular date.

Please allow sufficient time for editorial review, and do not simultaneously submit an article to IPWatchdog and another publication without informing us.

Press Releases

These guidelines apply to substantive articles and commentary.

If you would like to submit a press release, please visit our Press Release page for separate submission information and requirements.

Never Behind a Paywall

IPWatchdog believes substantive intellectual property news, information, and analysis should be accessible to the people who need it.

For more than 25 years, articles published on IPWatchdog.com have remained free to readers.

That commitment is central to our publishing model.

Our articles remain accessible to readers without subscription fees or paywalls, allowing contributors’ work to reach the broadest possible intellectual property audience.

Thought Leadership. Never Behind a Paywall.