EADS ETL
8 December 2011
Steps for maximizing the value of intellectual property while minimizing risks were the subject of a high-level panel today at the 2011 IP Week in Brussels, Belgium, which included the participation of Wulf Hoeflich, head of the EADS Technology Licensing initiative.
The panel outlined three transaction variables that should be integrated in successfully maximizing the value of intellectual property: context, approach and specific considerations.
“This was an excellent session that focused on the basics for successful marketing of technology, which are reflected in the values that we apply at the EADS Technology Licensing initiative,” Hoeflich explained.
In the context variable, the intellectual property’s valuation is driven by open market forces – with the technology’s business role determining whether the transaction is incremental (by improving an existing business) or enabling (providing first-of-a-kind business opportunities).
For the approach variable, elements that come into play include income, market comparables (which help prepare a high-level valuation by defining price levels across a given portfolio) and cost.
The third variable – specific considerations – encompasses such buyer-specific value drivers as: blocking power, pricing premium, product synergies, increases in market presence/brand value, and royalty rate balancing/royalty avoidance.
Joining Hoeflich at the IP Week panel were Herbert Munsterman, the General Counsel for DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol; Pekka Valkonen, Patent Manager for Fortum Power Solutions; and Raymond Zenkich, a partner in the Red Chalk Group.
The annual IP Week event focuses on advancing the intellectual property system in Europe, and it brings together debates and discussions, a trade show and advanced social networking tools in Brussels – which is home to headquarters of the European Commission, Parliament and the World Customs Organization, as well as major industry associations.
