Custom Search

Followers

Intellectual Property In Your Business Plan



  
Most companies that are worthy of raising venture capital have proprietary Intellectual Property (IP). In fact, the quality of the IP and the management team are often the two most important aspects of a venture capitalist’s investment decision. 

The challenge that many ventures face, however, is that most investors will not sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), and NDAs are critical to maintaining the proprietary nature of the IP. This article details the appropriate strategy for addressing proprietary IP in your business plan in order to attract investor attention while retaining the confidentiality of your inventions.
Focus on the Benefits of and Applications of the IP: The business plan should not discuss the confidential aspects of the IP. Rather, the plan should discuss the benefits of the IP. Remember that even the most amazing of technologies will not excite investors unless it has tangible benefits to customers.

The business plan first needs to discuss the products and services into which the IP will be integrated. It then must detail the benefits that these products and services have to customers and differentiate them from competitive products. When applicable, it is helpful to include non-confidential drawings and backup materials of the products and services in the Appendix.

Focus on Customer Needs and the Relevant Market Size: The business plan must also discuss how the benefits of the IP fulfill a large customer need. To accomplish this, the plan needs to detail customer wants and needs and prove that the company’s offerings specifically meet these needs.

Secondly, the plan needs to discuss the marketplace in which the IP is offered and the size of this marketplace. Critical to this analysis is determining the relevant market size. The relevant market size equals a company’s sales if it were to capture 100% of its specific niche of the market. For example, a medical device’s market size would not be the trillion dollar healthcare market, but rather the sales of all competing medical devices.

Focus on Competition and Competitive Differentiation: Your business plan must also prove that your IP is better than competitive inventions. In identifying competitors, note that listing no or few competitors has a negative connotation. It implies that there may not be a large enough customer need to support the company’s products and/or services. On the other hand, should there be too many competitors, then the market may be too saturated to support the profitability of a new entrant. The answer -- any company that also serves the customer needs that you serve should be considered a competitor.

The business plan should detail both the positive and negative aspects of competitors’ IP and products/services and validate that your offerings are either superior in general, or are superior in serving a specific customer niche.

Prove that you can Execute on the Opportunity: As importantly as proving the quality of the IP and that a vast market exists for its applications, the business plan most prove that the company can successfully execute on the opportunity.
 
Read book regarding Intellectual Property
 
Essentials of Licensing Intellectual Property (Essentials (John Wiley))Intellectual Property-Patents, Trademarks And Copyright in a NutshellIntellectual Property: The Law of Trademarks, Copyrights, Patents, and Trade Secrets for the ParalegalEmanuel Law Outlines: Intellectual Property



Source : FM Chamber

Visit IPVALLEY for more information.

Popular Posts

Label

Copyright Infringement (4) patent (4) Trademark (3) Trademarks (3) Copyright (2) Copyrights (2) Due Diligence (2) How Copyrights And Patents Affect Your E-Biz (2) Industrial Design (2) Intellectual Property Agreement (2) Patent Attorney (2) Trade Secrets (2) Bureaux Internationaux Réunis pour la Protection de la Propriété Intellectuelle (1) Business Plan (1) Combat the Recession (1) Down Economy (1) Ebay (1) Engaging With China (1) Entrepreneurship (1) Function Intellectual Property In Business Plan (1) Geographical Indication (GI) (1) HOLLYWOOD (1) History Of Copyright Law (1) How Do I Copyright My Music? (1) How To Choose Good a Patent Attorney (1) How to Protect Your Content With Copyright for Free (1) How to Protect Your Intellectual Property (1) IP Issues (1) IP Rights and Perceptions of Traditional Cultures (1) IT Industry (1) Identifying Intellectual Property (1) Intellectual Property And Ebay (1) Intellectual Property In Business Plan (1) Intellectual Property Management (1) Intellectual Property News (1) Ip Management (1) Law Origins (1) Manage Intellectual Property to Create Wealth (1) More IP Definations (1) Non-Compete Enforcement (1) Outcomes of Intellectual Property (1) Patents for Sale (1) Protect Your Intellectual Property (1) Protect Your Own Intellectual Property (1) Protecting Copyright (1) Protecting Your Intellectual Property (1) Small Intellectual Property (1) Trademark Dilution (1) Trademark Protection (1) US Copyright Law (1) WIPO (1) What Everyone Should Know About Intellectual Property (1) What Intellectual Property? (1) business perspective (1) consultancy (1) copyright for artists (1) ebook (1) how to make money from patent (1) iPhone Trademark (1) ideas (1) inventing (1) making money (1) patent monetization (1) pto (1) registration and legal services (1) trademark lawyer (1)