Wei Wei Jeang

Freedom-to-operate (FTO) means the ability and confidence to use, make, or sell a product or process without fear of infringing the intellectual property (IP) rights of others. An FTO analysis identifies and evaluates patent infringement risks (and potentially other types of intellectual property) and provides valuable information for research and technology commercialization. Many companies conduct an internal FTO analysis for the development of a new product or process, redesign of an existing operating unit, or change of manufacturing process or raw materials. Some may choose to conduct an FTO analysis only when the commercialization of a product is likely to generate a threshold amount of profit. This decision may depend on the budget, the likelihood of litigation, and the potential revenue generated by the sales of the new product or service.