Category Archives: Technology Transfer

Take Two Metrics and Call Me…

To evaluate a university’s commitment to supporting national innovation goals, here are two metrics that are not generally reported, but ought to be. 1) what is the university’s budget for innovation? In total dollars, and as a % of its … Continue reading

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Giving Lip

With regard to giving lip to university technology transfer work, perhaps we really do live in a “who cares?” administrative environment. You know, as in it’s all petty idealism to actually think that public statements should reflect what is happening … Continue reading

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Follow the Money Tensions

Bayh-Dole sets up a three key tensions in how licensing money is allocated. costs vs research (invest or slush?) inventors vs administration (how much is shared?) inventors vs other costs (when is it shared?) Universities mobilize policy to deal with … Continue reading

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Linear Model

There is a lot of talk about the limitations of the “linear model” of innovation. Here’s a good paper on the topic by Benoit Godin. “It is rather a theoretical construction of industrialists, consultants and business schools, seconded by economists.” … Continue reading

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Technology Lists

A lot of effort appears to be going into creating “technology available for licensing” lists as commercial services. This is pitched as a way to “market” university “technologies”. The competition is to create the list with the best features. The … Continue reading

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Co-marketing IP

Why do so few universities coordinate their patent portfolios? And why is it such news when they do? The demands of “marketing IP” in the patent broker model are such that it’s a huge drain of energy and apparent loss … Continue reading

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A Little Lecture on Bayh-Dole

If you look at the list of purposes of the Bayh-Dole Act at 35 USC 200, you will find these elements: Use the patent system to promote the utilization of federally supported inventions encourage maximum participation of small business firms … Continue reading

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Invention and Expertise

University IP policy tends to implement a “great man of invention” assumption. This is easy to do, not necessarily intentional, and unforgivable for a research organization of any sophistication. The “great man of invention” model proposes that a dominant individual … Continue reading

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Software and Biotech Licensing

University technology transfer is dominated by the what can be called “biotech licensing” expectations. University administrators and licensing professionals tend to believe that “biotech” is where the money is, both now and historically, and that the primary means of getting … Continue reading

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Open Innovation and University Tech Transfer

Open innovation lies at the root of university technology transfer. The fundamental expectation in moving technology from basic research to industry requires that companies accept incoming technology. As soon as one is up against the “not invented here” syndrome, one … Continue reading

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