Innovate or Perish: Managing the Enduring Technology Company in the Global Market

IP Management Styles

In looking at the IP environment more closely, most companies view and manage their investments in intellectual property in three primary ways: “defend and protect,” “develop and drive,” and “market and commercialize.” The following sections will describe each of these approaches in greater detail, including the benefits and issues associated with each one. By clearly aligning to a core strategy for IP management, business leaders can then effectively establish an implementation strategy that is much more likely to achieve predictable and desired results. In other words, ensuring consistency between expectations and approach will ensure that the team charged with implementation knows what to deliver and has the tools necessary to do so.

Defend and Protect

Managing IP in a defensive posture is perhaps the most traditional and basic form of IP management. In essence, the second that a company opens its doors for business, it is in the position of defending itself against outside IP claims. Firms that focus primarily on this aspect of IP management tend to view the function as a reactive one—responding and mobilizing only when threatened or asserted against. Clearly, effective defense against such claims is value producing for the company, as it limits or eliminates financial and operating exposures. Recent American Bar Association figures suggest that, on average, defending a patent litigation suit costs between $2 million and $6 million. This does not include ...