Disruptive Tendencies

Fathers, sons, brothers, husbands…

2011-09-11T17:30:48-04:00

This was the blog I was going to write, with much introspection, after having just seen “Warrior”, a much more thought-provoking movie than many would give it credit for on its face. I had it half-written in my head, as...

Big Ideas: There If You Look

2011-08-14T20:16:25-04:00

In today’s New York Times, Neil Gabler bemoans, “Ideas just aren’t what they used to be.” He goes on: “Once upon a time, they could ignite fires of debate, stimulate other thoughts, incite revolutions and fundamentally change the way we...

Derivative Works: The Battle Over Purple Play-Doh

2010-11-24T10:46:06-05:00

One of the most contentious areas in licensing negotiations is in the area of ownership of derivative IP. The most effective articulation of the issue that I have seen was by Jill Riola, a highly capable licensing attorney working at Carlton Fields in Orlando....

Conflicting Goals in Asymmetrical Deals: Market Exclusivity

2010-11-22T08:12:42-05:00

How many people have considered that Microsoft is, at its core, a licensing company? Or that the entire PC industry owes its existence to a licensing deal, the non-exclusive license to IBM for MS-DOS in the 80’s? How different a company would Microsoft have been had they signed an exclusive licensing deal? Chances are that it wouldn’t still be around. Bill Gates certainly wouldn't have become the richest guy in the world. As a licensing guy, I can only speculate on whether it was IBM's negotiating naivete or Microsoft's chutzpah that led to the deal being structured as it was...

IP Licensing – Gut Check Time!

2010-11-18T11:40:59-05:00

So you’re now thinking that licensing makes sense as a means of accelerating the time-to-market and monetizing your leading-edge technology. You’ve identified the gorilla as well as the chimps in your space, and managed to get the attention of at least one of them. They’ve probably begun posturing and now they’re coming to the table to discuss terms. For most companies, this is a classic “Oh shit!” moment...

Before Taking the Licensing Plunge, Consider These 3 Things

2010-11-14T14:00:00-05:00

If I had to impart any words of advice to a company that is seriously looking at licensing as a go-to-market model, it would be the following three things: 1. Understand all of the implications of a licensing strategy, including its impact on valuation and potential liquidity events for the shareholders; 2. Develop guiding principles outside of the deal; 3. Assess every deal through a strategic filter.

Fight or Flight? Why Big Companies Do Deals

2010-11-11T08:00:00-05:00

BigCo's are largely risk averse. Status quo rules the day and that having a team of singles hitters internally is easier to manage than going to the free agent market and bringing in the guy who will either hit it out of the ballpark or go down swinging. Unless that home run hitter is also talking to another team in your division, which could lose you more games. The threat of him landing with a competitor usually changes the way in which you look at his availability as well as what you're willing to pay to get him on your team. It's the competitor pre-emption premium....

In Dealmaking, Patience is a Virtue

2010-11-10T08:00:00-05:00

The corporate DNA in most large companies is such that getting to signed paper can often be a lengthy business development process. Early stage companies have agility built into their DNA. Reconciling these two extremes can be extremely challenging. The pay-off can be significant, and as I previously blogged, may help to bring in money to the company at key inflection points in a company’s development...

Asymmetrical Licensing as a Go-to-Market Strategy

2010-11-08T08:00:00-05:00

Structured correctly and presented with conviction, technology licensing can be a means to generate early revenues, get market traction and acceptance without requiring a massive shareholder dilution post-proof-of-concept....

Go-to-Market Challenges for Start-ups

2010-11-05T08:00:00-04:00

A very real dilemma facing the majority of early stage, pre-critical mass companies is how best to commercialise their technology. Most companies grossly underestimate the time and expense to first productise and then again to commercialise their IP....