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i recently got a piece of software i wrote copyrighted and am actually very very nervous.

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To start, I would like some clarification on a few items... you got this piece of software from somewhere, or you actually wrote it yourself? If you wrote it yourself, was it for a school project or simply for your own purposes? Universities have very strict rules as to establishing ownership of a piece of software created during your time of study. Additionally, you say that it is copyrighted. If so, where and with whom did you obtain this copyright? [ QUOTE ]
it is something that (at least it seems) the audience i am focusing on needs.

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This doesn't seem like a very positive outlook to me. You say "at least it seems" that people need your software. You really need to analyze the potential market for your product. I am not really a marketing guy, but it doesn't seem to me that you really understand everything that you are about to get into. I would hate to see you incur expenses to get your project going without having any idea who to sell your product to.
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i was told i could get away with selling it for $500 a pop, but am settling to do it for $300 to attract smaller companies.

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Again, who told you that you could get away with it for $500, and did you calculate $300 yourself or you just take that number out of thin air?

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my question is (and i'm sure it probably won't be answered) what is the likelyhood of being run over by some competition like Microsoft if and when they get wind of this area of software development being an untapped resource.

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Without knowing anything about your software, this is still really easy to answer. You will eventually face competition, that is how the system is set up. You have to create your product in a way that it is not easily copied. For example, there had to be a person who came up with the idea for online gaming. But obviously, there is no way to prevent competition because it isn't difficult to create this software. You need a comprehensive business plan for your software, even if you are the only person running this business. Thinking out lots of possibilities is a good way to understand the business at hand. I could go into this a lot further, but it probably will not be much help. The last thing I will say here is that there is an exit strategy for every business. With software, it might be best to eventually have your product purchased from a software giant. Many of the original business partners make millions off such transactions and never have to work again. If you want to keep running the business yourself, you obviously still have to work Where do you see your potential business is 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 3 years, etc.

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i'm a complete newb to marketing as well, i'm a comp sci student super senior status and i feel like this is my way out to become independently wealthy yet if i MESS THIS UP it will fail.

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My strong recommendation is that you find a business partner, likely a person from your school, who is willing to partner with you. It doesn't sound like you have any idea about business related items, and if you don't want to screw this up then you should get some help from someone who does. At my school, there is an entire entreprenuer program that links the people with the ideas, such as yourself, to the people that knows how to market and sell the idea. This would be ideal for you.

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i need all and any thoughts for marketing and protecting myself.

thanks in advance.

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Lastly, we don't know anything at all from you except you have this software that people might need and you don't want to be overtaken by Microsoft. I don't know how to help you because I don't have any information that I can use to effectively give you recommendations. The best recommendation I can make right now is that you partner with someone who knows about startups or has a business background.