IP P®OSPE©TIVE

I've been meaning to have Duncan Bucknell as the IP Market Player of the Week for some time. Indeed, Mr. Bucknell frequents all of the IP blog conversations that I do, so I've read his perspective on different facets of the IP Market - usually equipped with a bit of humor, which is always a relief. On Duncan Bucknell's  IP Think Tank Blog, one of my favorite IP blog conversations took place last year, titled "What is IP Strategy Anyway?" I encourage you ... Read More

I've realized that the "IP Market Player of the Week" may also be a highly influential individual in the IP market, and should not be limited to firms and institutions.  Thus, this week's "IP Market Player of the Week" is an individual working from within a large institution. The position of IP asset manager is not one which is commonly held by the largest I-Banking institutions across the world. Nevertheless, Deutsche Bank, and more specifically its Director, Mark Lucier, have formed a practice ... Read More

The business model of this defensive IP aggregator is not only unique, but it is inspiring for those of us that spend most of our professional time working with and protecting the IP of operating companies.  Commencing business just one year ago last month, RPX celebrated its birthday with the recent announcement that HTC Corp., a Taiwanese mobile phone company, has become the 20th company to subscribed to RPX's membership. How it works: RPX offers operating companies a unique opportunity to defend against offensive patent ... Read More

Progressive and successful intellectual property management involves not only the expertise of a lawyer, but also integrates knowledge and experience from various disciplines of the IP market, including valuation, sales, accounting, tax, and the ability to navigate the market with a network of relationships and an understanding of the market players.  This was the reason London-based Coller IP Management was launched.  An off-shoot of private equity head, Coller Capital, the IP consultancy combines commercial and technology expertise with patent and trademark lawyers to offer somewhat of ... Read More

A product of MIT investments and technologies, IPVision, Inc. now provides analytical and consulting services for companies and clients needing strategic patent analysis and patent portfolio assessment.  IPVision harvests its own human capital in professionals experienced in IP management, specializing in assessing corporate positions based on its intellectual property strength and future outlook.  Specifically, according to their site: IPVision services build upon our broad-based experience, public and proprietary datasets and the IPVision analytics platform. Project services and reports span all perspectives of IP issues, ... Read More

I've known about this online community of intellectual property professionals for a while now, but I've decided to make it this week's IP Market Player because of a recent discussion I had with a few IP strategists regarding the need for more discourse among large players in the IP transactions market.  Gathering 2.0 is an online community for all professionals involved in the management of intellectual property as business assets - or in, as they call it, I-stuff (all non-legally protected intangibles).  It ... Read More

Invotex Group is a consulting company with offices along the Eastern shore in Washington D.C., Baltimore, and Philadelphia.   According to their site, they provide accounting, financial, economic and regulatory consulting services to the business and legal communities.  Of course, I wouldn't feature them here if they were just a consulting company.  They also have an extensive IP management and consulting service, performing intellectual property transaction, compliance and management services for inventors, IP owners and licensors.  They do a significant amount of IP licensing work, including ... Read More

Producers of the Intellectual Asset Management magazine, among other publications and IP-related endeavors, the IP Media Group has made its mark in the IP transaction market.  I read IAM magazine routinely, as it is truly the best source for IP transaction-related information.  I posted recently on the IAM 250, the directory source for the world's 250 leading IP market professionals.  This is just one of the great ideas coming from this IP "media" guru, meant to bring a little more transparency to ... Read More

When the line of traditional investment opportunities curtails, creative alternative investments must be found. I like to think that, currently, one of the most creative alternative investments that provides an option for great return (but with significant risk) can be found in commercial-stage intellectual property. Investing in inventors, universities, and start-ups involved in the innovation-to-commercialization process offer a unique but catchy investment opportunity, and Paul Capital has taken note. The self-proclaimed "alternative investment firm" offers a branch that focuses on financing royalty products, ... Read More

Acacia Technologies LLC, or otherwise known as the licensing company under the umbrella of the publicly traded Acacia Research Corporation (NASDAQ: ACTG), is "in the business of acquiring, developing, licensing and enforcing patents." (from Acacia's website)  With over 100 patented technologies in their repertoir, Acacia generates revenue through licensing patents for "primarily individual inventors and small companies with limited resources to deal with unauthorized users."   According to Acacia's Fact Sheet, the firm has generated revenue through at least 52 different licensing programs, which ... Read More