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A Technical Services company in the energy sector approached Coller IP Management to carry out a review of the technologies and processes that it had developed. The organisation had its foundations in sector-specific R&D and services. It had been privatised and was facing the challenges of delivering business growth in a fully commercial environment. Prior to privatisation, it had developed a wide range of technologies and specialist services, mainly targeted at specific sector industry problems. The organisation owned a large number of patents and applications, but without a business-related IP strategy. In commercial markets, the business needed to focus on areas most likely to deliver substantial growth.
Our client asked for decision support for the management team, with a specific focus on three of their product/service areas where their understanding of the IP position was unclear. In each of the three focus areas, we provided structured work packages, covering the following steps:
1) We developed an understanding of the in-house technologies that had been developed and the relevant market drivers.
2) We carried out an IP audit, to establish the extent and robustness of the IP held by our client in each area.
3) We analysed competitors, to understand the impact that IP held by others in their marketplace could have on our client’s business plans and to identify the risks that our client was exposed to.
4) We completed an initial valuation of the product/service to prioritise investment and inform management decisions.
5) We proposed a range of actions to develop our client’s IP, to refocus its management plan in some areas and to mitigate IP risks that had been identified. These included making much more use of Trademark registration to position the organisation better in the market and new patent filings.
We also provided the professional legal services to register and file the new IP. In tackling these business growth issues, our client has developed a better insight into the importance of IP.
The company executives have confirmation that their IP is differentiated from others in the market and now have the confidence to ramp up investment in a key service. They also have a better understanding of the patenting process and have strengthened their claims. Moreover, the company has now moved to an exploitation strategy based on distribution rather than licensing, based on our analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the patent portfolio. Our client is now extending its understanding into other areas of business strategy, including where to further focus investment, which business relationships to develop in the market and how to value and consider potential acquisitions.
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