Cavtec- Contribution of Information Technology to IP Valuation

Today, IT and information systems are everywhere and are definitely here to stay. After contributing to almost every possible application which humans ever thought of ranging from construction to research; from accounts to rocket science; from management to organization, now IT and database systems are diverting their attention to patents, technology transfer and the like. Intellectual property is a new field and its full potential is yet to be unleashed but as of now the greatest enigma faced by IP professionals is the issue of Technology valuation, this refers not only to the value one associates with a technology but also to the fact that how much should one expect from a technology or from a patent. This is very important when one needs to make informed decisions in business about where to invest, why to invest and how to invest, especially in research. It is for this purpose that financial professionals are hired by big companies especially for patent valuation. In past few years there has been a tremendous increase in the percentage of revenues generated by intangible assets of any given organization. But the methods which are presently used for IP valuation are both coarse and are out of reach for people who have no financial background. Therefore there is a need for a platform which can be used for determining IP value with a good amount of precision and reliability. Cavtec has come up with one such platform called CAV. This is a software that has been field tested on over 100 projects since 1997 and has helped universities, businesses, and entrepreneurs develop effective IP strategies and negotiate successful agreements. It was formally launched this November; CAV was also recently showcased in LES annual meeting.
CAV is a repeatable, comprehensive approach to IP valuation. It features a step-by-step method for quantifying factors that determine a technology's competitive advantage in a given market. This is a PC based approach and its key applications include valuing early- stage technologies, negotiating patent licensing, determining venture investments, predicting IP success in marketplace, performing due diligence, calculating infringement damages etc.
CAV, patented by CAVTEC founder Ted Hagelin, is based on his extensive expertise. Hagelin is nationally recognized for IP valuation through his work as the Director of Syracuse University's Technology Commercialization Research Center and his research on intellectual property strategy and patent valuation. He teaches intellectual property and technology commercialization law at Syracuse University College of Law.
In my opinion there is lot of scope in this arena of software development for IP analytics and valuation as this not only makes life of a patent professional easier but also increases efficacy and productivity both qualitatively and quantitatively of any IP department. It is also possible to develop in house products to serve such purposes. But, at present what is most important is the fact that industry should recognize this as a vital need for IP departments and should work towards resource allocation on such projects.
Source: Reuters

Information Sources in Patents - a book review

Technology explosion in the last two centuries has brought about radical changes in the way we live, interact and conduct our business. Efforts towards channeling these developments have become a discipline in its own regard and this task became more structured when the human race moved in to the information age. The macroscopic analysis of patent data has taken our understanding to an altogether new level with the synergy it derived from the advent of information technology. Patent Informatics, a spin off, which has evolved as a result of developments in the way we handle information and because of our enhanced data processing skills has become pivotal in today’s technology development and management. Even now, there are relatively few guides and manuals which cater to the needs of various stake holders like patent information analysts, business managers, policy analysts, researchers, technology managers and students, in understanding and exploring the available patent information sources. Individual databases hosted by public and private organizations always provide the necessary functional and technical information necessary for using their databases to our advantage in the form of user manuals. However, it may not be that easy to actually maintain a host of these manuals because of the vast pool of databases that are in vogue. Stephen Adams attempted to address these problems in his guide titled Information Sources in Patents. This book comes to our rescue at a right time where we are overwhelmed with information and lost in the complex yet amazing world of patents.

The book is divided in to two parts with the first half dealing with the patent processes and documentation and the second half dealing with the databases and search techniques. The first five chapters makes up the first part and the next seven chapters makes up the rest and at the end a separate chapter is dedicated to throw some light on the future developments that are likely to take place in the areas of patent systems and patent searching.

As students of Intellectual Property & Technology Management (Agriculture), we take up courses which are centered on developing search strategies, conducting FTO analysis and infringement analysis. This guide on information sources in patents is well tailored to suit our academic and research needs. This book definitely is a master piece as it serves the purpose of a sign post offering the right direction for extracting the information from the growing patent data mines. It is a holistic book, which is as much helpful to a beginner as it is to an experienced professional patent search specialist.