What exactly is a "Provisional Patent"?

[cuartio52]

Legalzoom.com is advertising that they can do a "provisional patent" for $199. I've never heard of such a thing. I know that a "real patent" costs around $2500 with a good intellectual property law firm. What the heck is a "provisional" patent?

[adaya]

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office offers inventors the option of filing a provisional application for utility patents. A provisional patent application allows filing without any formal patent claims, oath or declaration, or any information disclosure statement. It provides the means to establish an early effective filing date in a non-provisional patent application. It also allows the term "Patent Pending" to be applied.
In effect, a provisional patent application is a preliminary step before filing for a non-provisional patent that gives one additional year of protection or grace - maybe enough time to test market your invention before investing in the cost of a regular patent.

[andor25]

Maybe something which makes things be in a limit.

[osmont]

A chance to steal your idea out from under you while they are paying for the rights on the down low.

[delton]

Legalzoom.com is advertising that they can do a "provisional patent" for $199. I've never heard of such a thing. I know that a "real patent" costs around $2500 with a good intellectual property law firm. What the heck is a "provisional" patent?