From the seed a farmer plants to the harvest they reap, there is intellectual property on every farm. To protect and monetize this valuable asset, farmers need to understand what types of intellectual property are found on the farm and how they can license it. Let’s explore these two topics
Predicting the value of intellectual property, especially a patent, is always a challenge. While different valuation formulas calculate all sorts of factors, such as market comparisons or income, these have limitations. But when combined with other variables, they can offer a pretty good estimate of what the value may be.
The medical device industry is changing so fast that getting your med device to market sooner rather than later is the priority. The rapid pace of new devices entering the market is shortening the lifespan of med device technology. The question is how will you bring your med device into the market to profit from this multi-billion dollar opportunity? Will, you market it directly, license it out to an established player, or use a combination of these two strategies?
In 2004, Dell faced a patent infringement lawsuit for selling its computers online. A small business claimed Dell violated its business method patent for selling a product internationally using the internet. How you do something – key processes and methods that give your business a competitive advantage – are valuable
Sometimes pooling your IP with others can be a better way to make money with it. Especially if it creates a billion dollar industry. Some of the biggest corporations in the world use patent pools to license their IP. It’s basically a joint venture strategy. The purpose of the
A small stationary products manufacturer used it to successfully defend its self against a large competitors claims. A small computer game company used it to defend an infringement suit by a major entertainment studio. And a small company used it to sue some of the largest US telecommunications companies for
Patent and technology know-how licenses are often confused. While they often go hand-in-hand, there are actually two different strategies for licensing them. Your patents are legal rights that only prohibit others from using the parts of your technology covered by the patent claims. Your technology know-how are your methods, materials,
NASA is offering startups the opportunity to license their intellectual property technology for no upfront cost. And you can work with their IP for up to three years without paying any royalty. Some of the worlds most famous and successful inventions were created using NASA IP. These include cordless tools such as power drills and vacuum cleaners, CAT scanners, the computer microchip, and freeze-dried foods, home insulation, invisible braces, enriched baby food, the video game joystick, LED lights, memory foam and many others.
Not taking action with your patent will cost you over $250,000. And that’s not counting the cost of lost revenue opportunities or litigating any infringement. It’s estimated that the average cost over the course of the 20-year life span of a single patent is about $100,000.00 – or roughly $5,000 per year in maintenance fees. And that doesn’t begin to cover the initial investment, which on average is about $150,000.00 to develop a single patentable invention. That’s due in part because the U.S. patent office currently rejects about 65% of all patent applications.
