The economic and brand value of patents is of paramount importance. And this is why, in the following lines, we want to introduce cooperative value as a key to business development. We shall also explain why it is necessary to adopt a technology transfer strategy that includes IP partners. 

Cooperative models: the path to success

Technology transfer is the process by which technology is transferred from federal laboratories, universities, or other public or private research institutions to industry, where it can be transformed into a commercial product or service.

In this way, a bond of mutual interest is created that develops in a highly satisfactory environment of cooperation. As we all know, one of the advantages of patenting a product is that the competition is not permitted to use it... But everything changes in this case, since inter-company collaboration sets competitiveness to one side in order to encourage and speed up advances within the sector.  

Many governments spend billions on research and development activities each year, resulting in a neverending pipeline of new inventions and technologies that add to the already high inventiveness of the private sector. It should therefore be noted that one of the institutions most active in this area is the university sector. And the upshot of this is that, worldwide, many higher education centers are registering patents to market them later. 

Technology transfer enables many of these technologies or innovations to be marketed by industrial partners who can develop, improve and implement them using a market-driven business strategy.

Because the transfer of industrial and intellectual property is important

However, the spending that these research centers make on R&D&i is not always adequately rewarded, since their Technology Transfer Offices do not have the necessary comprehensive internal capabilities.  Given the size of the investment, the complexity of the work and the potential revenue at stake, they need a strategic IP services partner to help them make the most of their patent portfolio, whose strategy may include the complete transfer of technology or even working in collaborative environments with third parties, sharing the rights with other organizations to share the expenses, in exchange for later participating in the profits once they are marketed. In this sense, the cooperative work of two or more teams paves the way for the creation of new development strategies and streamlines the work flow. We have been able to verify this, for example, in the pharmaceutical sector during the search for vaccines to combat COVID-19. 

A few reasons for having a strategic IP services partner

 A strategic partner like SHIP Global IP has a more global understanding of the landscape and already possesses a network of external advisors categorized by fields.

• Hiring a full IP service provider, which not only advises on the technology transfer process, but also provides IP translation services, offers a very real possibility of significant cost savings. The applicable discounts based on the centralization of the workload are worth considering, especially for Technology Transfer Offices with limited resources.

• SHIP Global IP, for example, also has an IP platform that centralizes all IP projects, offering the possibility of obtaining instant contributions, managing translations and international patent and trademark applications, and real-time monitoring of the entire IP portfolio. This streamlined work flow significantly eases the administrative burden throughout the process, from the unveiling of the invention, the evaluation, patent application, selection of potential licensees for the granting of licenses for use and even for the sale of license ownership.

In short, technology transfer is key to the new reality of the 21st century. At SHIP we are experts in the integral management of intellectual property and we have the capacity to help Technology Transfer Offices consolidate their efforts, thereby maximizing the potential of their inventive activity. For more information, contact us.