A really basic question in looking at any business plan is the potential to protect the intellectual property underlying the business concept and/or process. If there is protection available, it may offer some lead time or competitive advantage for the business to grow.
We had a key patent in our software startup that issued in January, 2001. (It's 6,182,060. You can look it up here: Patent Office Link ) I don't think we were ever sure that others in the industry didn't infringe it, because the fishing expedition that would've made the case was unbelievably costly. In some ways, in this example, we may have been better off with "trade secret" protection (like the famous "Coke formula.")
The difficulty that surrounds protecting an issued patent, after having gotten one in the first place, is an important area for entrepreneurs to understand. In our case, not only did we have to make decisions about the extent to which we would go to protect our patent, we also had to decide about filing for and enforcing the patent around the world.
The whole topic of worldwide patents, filed country by country, is complex. A product that is protected by a patent only in the US can be made and sold outside the country by someone else (if a foreign patent is not filed) but not made or sold by that party in the US, I believe. In the case of software, especially being delivered over the web, the idea of protection and infringement becomes even more complex - and costly.
And, in the first place, certain premature disclosures "in public," or failing to file promptly, can invalidate the application itself.
But, all of that having been said, IP protection continues to be an absolutely critical requirement for startups. So, entrepreneurs need a thorough understanding of the topic. Thankfully, here's a place you can do that.
I just got done reading the new IP articles at the eVenturing blog. If you are in a venture that has the potential for IP protection, you will want to read them carefully. It's a terrific collection. Find them here: All About IP.