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The Money Making Power of Licensing
December 2013 Issue
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Welcome to the December issue of the Licensing 4 Profits newsletter.
A licensing team helps an intellectual property owner develop, negotiate and manage the licensing program. In this months Strategy Session article, we discuss two core members of this team, the IP attorney and licensing agent.
Santa Claus is a pop-culture icon known around the world. He's in the public domain, and although he's technically not owned by anyone, that hasn't stopped a diverse group of companies from claiming rights to "Santa" and "Santa Claus". So, in the holiday spirit, our next article, Leveraging IP: Santa Claus Trademarks provides a short review of the numerous Santa trademarks that have been issued by the USPTO.
Having a licensing strategy action plan is your road map to building wealth with your IP. Find out how to create one in this month's featured webinar; 5 Steps to a Wealth Creating Licensing Plan.
Sub-licensing gives the right to re-license the IP to other companies. If you decide to sub-license, then you need to be very specific about these rights. In our next article, Key Terms & Conditions, we review some important parts of this clause that should be part of your licensing agreement.
Learn why licensing is a fast track to the marketplace in our latest video, "Licensing IP Gets You into Any Market Any Place....Fast."
In This Month in IP History, find out what cookies, a game and an animated fairy tale have in common.
We conclude with the question, "What is the best way to determine if the licensor actually owns the intellectual property?"
Happy Holidays!
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Strategy Session: Working with an IP Attorney & Licensing Agent
 Forming the right licensing team can help licensors successfully license their IP. These professionals help to develop, negotiate and manage the licensing program. Depending on your IP, your team could include a licensing agent, an accountant, an attorney, and perhaps a public relations consultant, as well as a graphics design firm.
This month we focus on two key members of the team, the IP attorney and the licensing agent. It's important that these two members work together and understand each other's role. An attorney will review documents and provide basic advice on the IP rights. A licensing agent will typically focus on finding licensees and negotiating the deals.
Here are some tips on how to work with your IP attorney and licensing agent:
- Basic questions about licensing terms or royalty rates are best answered by the agent.
- The agent should have a form agreement that he uses as the starting point in any negotiation.
- Before the agent offers a licensing agreement to any potential licensees, the attorney should review it to make sure that it represents the licensor's interests fairly.
- If a licensee provides their own agreement, the agent should do the negotiating and then have the attorney review the final document before signing it.
- Once the licensing agreement is signed, the agent should manage the licensing program, from providing information about the IP to collecting royalty payments.
- The agent should handle minor breaches of the licensing agreement such as late royalty payments or missing sales deadlines.
- If licensee stops performing or doesn't correct a minor breach,the attorney should determine the options available and provide guidance on how to resolve the issues.
The bigger the licensing program, the more important it is to have the right type of licensing team. A good team is instrumental in helping an IP owner maximize their money making opportunities.
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Leveraging IP: Santa Claus Trademarks
Santa Claus is a pop-culture icon, but he's technically not a licensed entertainment character. Though Santa Claus, based upon Greek Saint Nicholas was a nurturing Christmas figure for years, it wasn't until American cartoonist Thomas Nast depicted him as a big, plump holiday gift giver that his modern legend truly took off.
He's in the public domain, which means he's always been up for grabs as a brand spokesman. Marketers have taken full advantage for decades, using his likeness to promote everything from cars and refrigerators to fast food and soda (famously and memorably, Coca-Cola).
"Santa" and "Santa Claus" is claimed by a diverse group of interests without the need to pay royalties, endorsements, or franchise fees. Although Santa is technically not owned by anyone,the Patent and Trademark Office has issued a plethora of Santa trademarks.
Santa Claus Anonymous® is for Santas who drink too much, and Santa Claus Land® is a theme park with real elves. Santa Claus Productions®, which hosts the annual Santa Claus Special®, owns the Santa Claus Network®, and sponsors the Santa Claus World Tour® (consisting entirely of Christmas tunes).
Santa Claus®, in typed form, is the registered trademark of The Topps Company. The city of Rovaniemi in Finland has claimed The Official Hometown of Santa Claus® as a service mark for advertising and tour promotion purposes. The University of Santa Claus® trains people to act like, you guessed it...Santa Claus.
A Canadian company holds a service mark for Santavision.TV®, that offers a webcast exhibit where children can talk to Santa Claus via the internet domain, "Claus.Com"® , which is a registered trademark. A stylized service mark, Santa's Town, A Texas Christmas Village®, is owned by Santa's Wonderland Corporation.
A Kentucky company holds the service mark, Santa's Hotline®. "HO HO HO®" is owned by a Georgia company. A company offers human resource materials under the service mark, Leadership Secrets of Santa Claus®. Coca Cola® has a trademarked image of Santa drinking a bottle of its soda. A circular seal with scalloped edges bearing the phrase, The Official Seal of Santa's Workshop® is also a protected trademark.
Even the U.S. military has clamped a trademark on its wildly popular NORAD Tracks Santa operation, and licensed a private company to sell T-shirts and other goods.
Whatever you do with revered Santa Claus, be creative and be aware he's freely available in public domain (unless of course, you'd like to use one of these registered trademarks, in which case a licensing agreement will be required).
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Feel free to pass this newsletter along to friends and associates. You can visit www.licensingcg.com to view other free reports and presentations. If you are interested in learning about our consulting services, please contact us at (646) 395-9572 or email info@licensingcg.com.
Wishing you a Happy Holiday and Prosperous New Year,
Rand Brenner
President & CEO
Licensing Consulting Group
About Rand Brenner
Rand has licensed some of the biggest Hollywood blockbusters, including "Batman" and the "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers", both of which generated billions of dollars in worldwide merchandise sales. His career included executive positions at Saban Entertainment and Warner Bros Consumer Products where he developed numerous licensing and promotional deals with Fortune 1000 companies.
Rand Brenner is the President & CEO of Licensing Consulting Group, a full service intellectual property management company. LCG provides IP management, strategy consulting, and property representation. For more information, please visit our website or send an email to info@licensingcg.com.
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Video Licensing Lesson
 | Licensing IP Gets You into
Any Market Any Place...Fast |
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Webinar: 5 Steps to a Wealth Creation Licensing Plan
A licensing plan provides the action steps for a successful licensing program. It is a marketing document that defines the products or services derived from the IP, what money making opportunities can be leveraged through licensing, and who are the right type of licensing partners.
During this webinar, you'll learn:
- The 8 Critical Questions to Answer Before You Develop a Licensing Action Plan
- Identifying the Right Resources to Make Your IP Licensable
- Why Should I license this IP - Understanding the Licensee Benefits
- " Show Me the Money" Financial Forecast - Building a Quick IP Profitability Analysis
- The Fast Track Licensing Plan - Review of the Quick Start 3 Part Licensing Worksheet
At the completion of this webinar, you will have the knowledge, information and tools to quickly create a licensing action plan and the first step toward making money with your IP.
Click here to view the webinar.
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Key Terms & Conditions - Sub-licensing
Sub-licensing gives the rights to re-license the IP to another company. If you decide to allow sub-licensing, you 'll need to be very specific about how the sub-licenses can be granted. In most cases, the IP owner will require prior written approval of the sub-licensee.
Additionally, the sub-license should include the same terms as the master licensing agreement. It should also state whether or not the sub-license comes to an end when the master licensee is terminated or expires for any reason.
Here are examples of some of the terms used in the sub-licensing clause:
- Licensee shall have the exclusive right to grant sub-licenses to others at royalty rates not less than those paid by the master licensee.
- Master licensee shall pay licensor xx percent of all revenue received for the sub-license.
- Termination of the license granted to master licensee shall terminate all sub-licenses that have been granted by master licensee.
When preparing or reviewing a licensing agreement, it's always best to seek qualified legal advice before you sign anything.
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This Month in IP History
- 1926 KEEBLER was trademark registered.
- 1935 A patent for the game "Monopoly" was received by Charles Darrow.
- 1937 Walt Disney's "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" was copyright registered.
Source:About.com
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Free Special Report: Licensing Trade Secrets
At the most basic level, a trade secret is simply information and knowledge. More specifically, it is often in the form of inventions, know-how, and show-how information that gives you a competitive advantage. Anything that takes time, money, or effort to develop and that you don't want your competitors to know about would be considered a trade secret.
Click here to download this free report.
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Featured Product: IP Money Magic: Mastering the Money Making Power of Licensing
Intellectual property management and money making skills are no longer just for IP owners. These are critical skills for today's business owners, CEO's, start-ups and inventors. The new intangible economy has made IP literacy and licensing the new, indispensable skill set of the 21st century.
Click here to learn more about this licensing workshop.
http://licensing4profits.com/store/
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Ask Rand Brenner
Q: What is the best way to determine if the licensor actually owns the intellectual property?
A: Proper due diligence is the first step when considering an intellectual property to license. This means doing research to verify the ownership of the IP, it's legal protection status, the status of any licensing agreements and the market opportunity. If the IP is a trade mark or patent, you'll want to verify it's registration status. For example, in the US, you can do a quick search using the on-line database at the USPTO.
Sometimes, the licensor is not the creator or inventor of the IP. You'll want to request a copy of their licensing agreement and make sure they have the rights to grant you a license. Be sure to also find out if the IP is licensed to other licensees, and whether any of these agreements conflict with the rights you are negotiating.
The final step is to research the marketplace to determine customer interest and market potential.
When you negotiate the licensing agreement, make sure it includes a Warranties and Representation clause. It basically says that the licensor has the right to grant you a license for the IP, and if someone disputes your rights, they will be responsible for resolving the claim.
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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The information in this newsletter is presented by Licensing Consulting Group as a service to the subscribers. Although the author attempts to keep this information current and accurate, he makes no warranty or guarantee that it is correct, complete or up-to-date. This newsletter may contain links or be linked to other web sites not maintained by Licensing Consulting Group. The author makes no representations, express or implied, with respect to the materials and information provided on any third-party web site linked to this newsletter, including any representations as to the accuracy, timeliness, reliability or completeness of any material or information on such linked site. Inclusion of a link in this newsletter to another web site does not imply recommendation, approval or endorsement by the author of the linked site.
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