The following news release from the United Inventors Association just popped over the transom. It’s a mea culpa/explanation about the UIA’s membership offer sent via invention submission company InventHelp earlier this month: 
“On Monday October 12, a one-time email was sent out by invention submission company InventHelp expressing support for the UIA’s mission and encouraging their substantial number of newsletter readers to join the UIA as members. This email has caused some understandable confusion among the UIA’s own members and the general public as to whether there is any official, or pending, “association” between the UIA and InventHelp. The answer is NO.
InventHelp is not a Certified member of the UIA, nor is there any pending application for them to become a Certified member of the UIA. The UIA frequently receives expressions of support from non-members in the invention community at large, and we are generally grateful for it.
The decision to allow the one-time email by InventHelp was approved by the UIA’s Executive Committee, without the knowledge of the full UIA Board. Indeed, as a part of normal operations to serve our members, many tactical decisions are made by the Executive Committee on a day-to-day basis between full UIA Board meetings, which are held six times a year. The one-time emailing by InventHelp does not represent a strategic change in the UIA’s fundamental mission: to provide education and reliable information to inventors, as well as Certification to groups and service providers who comply with rigorous professional and ethical standards.
It is also important to point out that no money ever changed hands: the UIA never asked or received revenue at any time from InventHelp, nor did InventHelp ask for or receive any special consideration by the UIA.
However, due to the understandable confusion generated by this one-time email, the UIA’s full Board has met to consider the matter very seriously over the past few days. We accept that, though perhaps well intentioned in its efforts to increase UIA membership, the one-time email has regrettably resulted in confusion and significant negative impact upon the UIA and its Board of Directors, as well as those individuals portrayed in the email without their prior knowledge or consent. In retrospect, the members of the Executive Committee acknowledge that the one-time email was a mistake due to its potential for creating a perception of an “association” where none exists. The UIA Board is drafting internal guidelines to make certain such a mistake is not made again in the future.
The full UIA Board accepts the expressions of regret for how the situation was handled by the Executive Committee and recognizes that their primary motivation was to bring the ever vital UIA message to potential new horizons.
The UIA’s mission and fundamental values have not changed. Together, the UIA, its members and full Board will continue to strive to make inventing safe, rewarding and fun!”
