The following is a list of the articles that appear in the December 2008 issue of Technology Transfer Tactics monthly newsletter. If you are already a current subscriber click here to log in and access your issue. Not a subscriber already? Subscribe now and get access to this issue as well as access to our online archive of back issues, industry research reports, sample MTAs, legal opinions, sample forms and contracts, government documents and more!

Technology Transfer Tactics,
Vol. 2, No. 12 (pp 177-192) December 2008

• Focus on physicians to unearth an untapped source of lucrative IP. couple of decades ago, a young dermatologist working for a Sutter Health hospital in northern California formulated the idea that one could use botulinum toxin for aesthetic purposes, to plump thin lips and smooth out wrinkles. He wasn’t the only physician toying with the notion at the time, but Sutter failed to pursue the idea or file a patent, and the doctor moved on to private practice. In 2007, Botox earned Irvine, CA-based Allergan $1.2 billion in sales ……… p. 177
• TTO uses grading system to sort IP portfolio and prioritize marketing efforts. If your office is strapped for time and resources like most TTOs, with staff in continuous scramble mode, it is close to inevitable that some valuable technologies will not get the attention they deserve. However, there are ways to not only bring a sense of order to the process and prioritize the most valuable IP assets, but also to boost TTO productivity so more inventions make it from the lab to the marketplace, according to Rick Silva, PhD, director of technology transfer for the University of Colorado in Denver (UCD) ……… p. 177
• Streamlined COI policy guides faculty involved in spin-offs. Spin-off companies create unique challenges for university TTOs because faculty inventors are often torn between the responsibilities involved with launching a new business and their university work. Further, trying to stay on the safe side of an institution’s conflict-of-interest policy is challenging, in large part due to the typical length and complexity of the rules governing COI ……… p. 178
• TTO enlists alumni attorneys to provide discounted services. The accelerating commercialization activity at Lehigh University requires the services of patent attorneys, and with a modest budget the TTO has found a creative way to afford those services: They use alumni patent attorneys who are willing to work at discounted rates for their alma mater ……… p. 179
• Idea of the Month: Rutgers incentivizes faculty to use template cooperative research agreements ……… p. 184
• Establish clear policies for ownership of inventions. Chances are that among the thousands of students lugging backpacks and skateboarding across campus, at least one is a budding genius who will make a valuable discovery while working in your university’s labs. The question then becomes, who owns the IP? ……… p. 185
• Adopt TTO mission statement to align strategies with goals. Whether by choice or by force, TTOs often seek to be all things to all people, from university administrators and researchers to state and local government officials, local businesses, licensees, outside investors, and alumni. But taking a scattershot approach to tech transfer is less effective than focusing on a single strategic goal and aligning all activities to that directive ……… p. 187
• Spend time on front end of strategic planning to avoid problems on back end. The TTO at Yale University is considered a model of strategic planning ……… p. 188
• Executive-in-residence programs gain steam as schools try to boost start-ups, keep businesses in-state. A growing number of TTOs are experimenting with various models of entrepreneur-in-residence programs ……… p. 199

Posted December 3rd, 2008 under Current Issue