Intellectual Property Strategy

Jane Lambert

9 Feb 2017

An intellectual property strategy is a plan for using intellectual property to achieve a business objective.  Just as there are any number of business objectives there can be any number of IP strategies.  Some are very simple such as the determining the optimum legal protection for the business's intellectual assets. Others may be much more complex involving licensing and cross-licensing. The usual place to start is the company's business plan but IP strategy can be useful even if there is no business plan because it can inform the business planning process.

A Simple Example

Suppose a business with a limited legal budget wants to choose the optimum legal protection for its intellectual assets. Here is how it could set about it.

• First, it would identify the main revenue streams over the business planning period.
• Secondly, it should ascertain the threats to those income streams most of which are likely to be commercial.
• Thirdly, it should consider countermeasures to those threats many of which will also be commercial such as developing new products or finding new markets.
• Where only a patent, trade mark or other intellectual property right will do, there may be several options. For instance, a new product may be patented or it may be a trade secret, The business will choose the more cost-effective form of protection.

Finally, it will give some thought to funding which may include some sort of intellectual property insurance.

Drawing up an IP Strategy

A good place to start is to catalogue the income generating assets that the com]any has or expects to develop and acquire and in some cases possible threats to those assets, a process sometimes called intellectual property or intellectual asset auditing.  This usually involves discussions with the company's management and sometimes its research and development or marketing personnel.  Initially, this work is likely to be done by consultants but subsequent work can be carried out by the company's own management. 

The next stage is to plan a route from the present situation to the company's objectives.  This will be done in conjunction with the company's management and its other professional advisers. It may involve the development of new products or services, arranging adequate legal protection or seeking licences from third parties.

Further Information

Should anyone wish to discuss this article or intellectual property strategy in general, he or she should call me during office hours on +44 (0)20 7494 5252 or send me a message through my contact form.

Jane Lambert’s Articles

Audit	04.03.16	Dispute Avoidance Planning and Dispute Management
Business Planning	03.04.16	Why every business plan should take account of intellectual property
	02.01.15	Putting IP at the Heart of Your Business Plan
Enforcement	31.08.16	What IPR have in common with WMD
	04.03.16	Dispute Avoidance Planning and Dispute Management
Investors	29.08.16	An IP Primer for Business Angels and Private Equity Investors
IP Awareness	27.08.16	IP's not just for Big Brands and High Tech Businesses
IP Strategy	09.01.11	What is IP Strategy?
Patenting	28.08.16	Patent or No Patent

Other Works

Author	Date	Title
Jim Blasingame	15.06.13	What Does Your Intellectual Property (IP) Look Like? Forbes
Ralph Eckhart	03.10.12	What is IP Strategy? IPstrategy.co.
Jackie Hutter		What is an IP Strategist? IP Maximizer Blog
Benjamin Lehberger	31.10.16	Intellectual property strategies for startups Techcrunch
Innovation Tactics	09.12.16	Strategic IP management options for your innovation
John Palfrey		Intellectual Property Strategy. MIT Press
Robert Pitkethly		IP Strategy, Handbook of IP Practices
Robert Pocknell and others		intellectual Property Strategy.
Kate Wilson	14.06.12	How to develop an IP strategy: outline of steps Lexology
WIPO		Some Important Steps to be Considered While Developing an Intellectual Property Strategy