Five Ways to Unleash Your Intellectual Property Potential

The so called “old economy” companies derived a significant portion of their value from manufacturing prowess and hard assets. In the past, companies invested heavily in tangible asset utilization to gain a competitive advantage. The shift is on. In the “knowledge economy,” intangible assets such as intellectual property and brand strategies play a key role in determining company value. Every company has intellectual property, whether it is a unique product, a clever brand name, or published information describing products or services. To compete in a rapidly changing business world, effectively using intellectual property assets will be a key strategy to increase business performance. There are three main elements of intellectual property; patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Let’s uncover the 5 ways your company can improve business results by leveraging intellectual property assets.

1. Obtain a patent
2. Leverage your patent or patent portfolio to gain a proprietary market advantage
3. Develop revenue streams from patent license agreements
4. Protect your valuable trademark, service mark, or copyright
5. Keep key intellectual property as a trade secret

How your polymer company leverages intellectual property depends on a myriad of circumstances and situations.  Some companies decide to obtain patent coverage to give the exclusivity that patents enable.  A good example of this approach is the prescription drug industry.  Pfizer was in the news recently when it’s blockbuster drug, Lipitor came “off patent” meaning the patent expired and now generic Lipitor could be sold.

Another example would be to keep key ingredients a trade secret.  The famous example here is the Coke recipe that is closely guarded, only a few Coke employees know the exact recipe and the formulation details are kept in a locked safe.

In the next series of blog posts, we will dive deeper into each of the 5 ways to leverage your intellectual property.

If you have an IP question or need help with your patent process, the InnoCentrix consultants can help.  Visit our website to find out more.