IPlytics Platform: Intelligence IP Analytics SaaS

It is excited to announce that TechIPm entered into an agreement with IPlytics for the promotion and sale of the IPlytics Platform in China, Japan, S. Korea, Taiwan and the United States of America.
The IPlytics Platform is an intelligence IP analytics SaaS to analyze patent strategy, technology trends, market developments and a company’s competitive position using the  innovative big data & machine learning techniques.

If you are interested in the IPlytics Platform, please contact Alex G. Lee (alexglee@techipm.com).

IP Financing for IP based Economic Growth

As a way out of the current worldwide economic depression, a new business model for exploiting hidden value in IP (Intellectual Property) is under development globally. For example, as a part of the Europe 2020 Strategy for jobs and growth, European Commission’s Innovation Union launched several initiatives to encourage IP ‘valorisation’ through IP-backed finance (http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/policies/innovation/policy/intellectual-property/index_en.htm). The basic model of Innovation Union’s IP-backed finance is to explore the role of IP as boosting not only business financing for innovation but IP transactions (*Traditional IP-backed financing models are IP securitization, IP loan, and IP sale & lease back).

Another example for IP ‘valorisation’ through IP-backed finance can be found in East Asian reason such as China, Japan, and S. Korea. Financial Services Commission in S. Korea recently announced that it will form an IP investment fund for IP acquisition and monetization. Initial funding amount will be around $100 M, and various IP investment models will be adopted. Korea Development Bank also formed $100 M IP investment fund specifically for SMEs. Industrial Bank of Korea also announced its plan for forming $2400 M IP investment fund for investing in not only patents but also other types of IP. It also expressed its plan for collaborating with global investment bank such as JP Morgan.

In addition to the public IP fund, many private sector investors such as venture capitals and private equities also entered into the IP Investment fund market, as the newly started president Park’s government insisted the important of IP for the sustainable economic growth of S. Korea and its commitments to support the formation of IP ecosystem. It is expected that the total amount of IP investment funds in S. Korea will reach $1 B in a few years.

These initiatives for exploiting hidden value in IP through IP finance could create a virtuous cycle that can accelerate the formation of fully evolved IP ecosystem as described in the insightful IP book “The Invisible Edge:” Financing for IP transactions will increase the volume of IP transactions. The increase in IP transactions will make available more transaction data, and thus, increase in transparency. The increase in transparency will lead to low transaction costs, and thus, increase in liquidity. The increase in liquidity will induce more capital for IP finance.

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NPE (Non-Practicing Entity) and Patent Reform Bill 2009

By the definition of Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent_troll), "non-practicing entity" (NPE) is a patent owner who does not manufacture or use the patented invention, but rather than abandoning the right to exclude, an NPE seeks to enforce its right through the negotiation of licenses and litigation.

According to Patent Freedom (https://www.patentfreedom.com/), as of December 2008, there are about 220 NPEs and over 800 subsidiaries including such as Intellectual Ventures and InterDigital. NPEs hold more than 16,000 patent families and are involved in more than 2,200 lawsuits (12% of total patent litigations).

Among the NPEs, especially Intellectual Ventures (IV) recently got a media attention due to a declaration of litigation proxy war. Gene Quinn, founder of IPWatchdog, expressed the IV's indirect route to court as "The Empire Strikes Back, Intellectual Ventures Style" (http://www.ipwatchdog.com/2009/09/02/the-empire-strikes-back-intellectual-ventures-style/id=5500/).

NPE defenders argued that NPE is a natural evolution of IP business in the knowledge-based
economy. NPE defenders insisted that the NPEs could be appreciated for the valuable secondary market they are creating. These intellectual investors recycle otherwise unused assets and make them part of the productive economy again (http://hallingblog.com/2009/09/18/in-defense-of-patent-trolls).

NPE opponents, however, said that the NPEs are hampering US innovation by abusing patent system and imposing heavy litigation cost and licensing fee burden to the companies. Recent written testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee by Coalition of Patent Fairness (http://www.patentfairness.org/) revealed the negative role of NPEs in innovation promotion and job creation.

The Coalition of Patent Fairness insisted that the current patent system has created a litigation based cottage NPEs. The coalition mentioned that a meaningful reform through passing the Patent Reform Act of 2009 (http://www.autm.net/Content/NavigationMenu/About/PublicPolicy/PatentReform/S515.pdf) will enable US companies to dedicate more resources to technology innovation and the creation of new jobs.


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