Strategy Session:    

The goal of IP marketing is to create licensing transactions. This is accomplished by reaching the right licensing marketplace and creating a buzz - requests for information, email, phone dialogue and licensing offers. The strategy is to communicate frequently and reach the intellectual property (IP) buyers in the right forum.

 

The internet is a great tool for reaching the right IP buyers. There are B to B websites that target specific markets and industries (such as publishing, consumer products and software).   The key is understanding the interests of these specific markets, and showing them how the IP has the potential to increase their bottom line. Using the tactics of conversation threads, IP marketers can use content that creates a dialogue with their potential licensing partners.

  

One of the biggest challenges in the IP world, especially with the enormous amount of IP available, is matching IP buyers with IP sellers. To that end, there are a number of internet based IP buyer and seller platforms that have been created to address that specific challenge. These include Yet2.com, IPEXL.com, New Idea Trade, 2Xfr.com, and others. The goal of these platforms is to provide access to buyers and sellers, by making it easier for the IP shopper. While these platforms are growing, they include only a small percentage of the IP marketplace.

  

Success in marketing your IP requires you to think about all the different tools that can be used to connect with IP shoppers. These include interactive communications with IP buyers, showcasing your IP on search engine visible websites, using streaming media sites to provide content on the value of your IP, looking at the opportunities available in the international marketplace, and providing the relevant information so IP buyers can make educated decisions about your licensing opportunity.  

Leveraging IP:

   

    

An evolving niche in IP Licensing is a financing tool called Royalty Monetization.  This financing tool enables the licensor to receive the minimum guaranteed payments from a licensing contract upfront rather than over the term of the licensing agreement.  

 

Royalty Monetization is a flexible financing tool. For example, in these types of transactions,  the owners of the licensing royalty streams can sell (or assign) all or part of the royalty streams to a buyer (funding source) in return for cash paid up front. It can also be structured to limit the royalty interest to certain products, defined territories or certain periods of time. Royalty financing can also be structured on a deferred basis, and used to provide the funding to complete the development of an intellectual property.  

 

Royalty financing costs are typically a percentage of the total guaranteed amount, which is the return to the investors providing the funding.  Royalty financing transactions vary from a minimum of $5 million (in guarantees) to hundreds of millions. The financing is completed through a private placement, which can provide funding in as little as 30 days. The investors are typically pension funds and insurance companies.  

There are three significant requirements needed for a licensor to qualify for this type of financing: 1) an assignment of or an absolute and unconditional promise to pay from an investment grade licensee, 2) a predictable cash flow, and 3) specified payment dates.  

 

LCG can assist IP licensors with royalty monetization transactions. If you have an IP licensing deal that fits the above criteria, please contact us at 646/395-9572 or email info@licensingcg.com. 

Video Licensing Lesson

Tradeshows are Goldmines of Licensing Resources

Is Your Trademark Available? Go Ask TESS

The Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) provides for on-line searching of existing trademark application and registration information.  TESS provides public access to the same text and image database of trademarks as is currently used by examining attorneys at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

TESS contains more than 3 million federally registered or pending trademarks, and available information on inactive applications and registrations (i.e. abandoned applications and cancelled or expired registrations).  It does not contain any information on state, foreign, or common law trademarks.

 

Click here to check out TESS. 

This Month in IP History

• 1486 - The first known copyright was granted in Venice.
• 1857  -The words & music to the famous Christmas song "Jingle Bells" was registered by Oliver Ditson and Company under the title One Horse Open Sleigh.
• 1888 - George Eastman patented the roll film camera for Kodak. 

Source:About.com

Ask Rand Brenner 

 

Q: How do I get my intellectual property ready to license?

 

A: One of the first steps is to make it marketable for licensing. That means the IP has to develop value in the marketplace.  

 

Value starts with securing rights to your IP.  Thisi includes both registered (as with copyrights, trademarks and patents) and unregistered IP (such as trade secrets and knowhow.  

 

The next step is to do something with your IP to make it marketable. This means delivering it to the market and proving that the customer wants and will pay for the IP.   

 

Once you do that, you've created marketability. Now you're ready to start licensing the IP. The more marketable the intellectual property, the better the opportunities will be to license your IP.

 

 

Got a question about licensing? Send an email to askrandbrenner@ licensing4profits.com.  You'll get an answer to your question which will be included in a future issue of this newsletter.

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