Assessment & valuation
A clear-eyed view of what you hold: strength of the claims, freedom to operate, addressable markets and a defensible range of what it is worth.
Intellectual property commercialisation
Empowering IP without borders.
Advancing commercialisation of intellectual property across global communities, for the benefit of innovators and inventive minds everywhere.
120+Projects deployed
$22B+Project net present value
30+Years of experience
Good ideas are evenly distributed. The means to commercialise them are not.
An invention made in a university lab in Nairobi, a workshop in Ho Chi Minh City or a garage in Adelaide faces the same obstacle: turning a right on paper into a product in the world takes valuation, protection, partners and capital — and those are concentrated in a handful of places.
IP Futures exists to close that gap. We work alongside inventors and institutions to move intellectual property from filing to deployment, across jurisdictions, on terms that keep the value with the people who created it.
A
Filed, then forgotten
Most patents are never licensed, built into a product or sold. They are granted, renewed for a few years and allowed to lapse.
B
Valued by guesswork
Finding out what a patent is worth has been slow and expensive, so most owners never do — and a valuable patent looks just like a worthless one.
C
Stranded by geography
The companies and capital that could use a technology sit in a few markets. Inventors outside them have no obvious way in.
Fig. 2 — What we do
From a right on paper to a product in the world.
Six capabilities, used together or one at a time, depending on where your IP is today and where it needs to go.
Commercialisation strategy
License, spin out, joint venture or sell. We map the realistic pathways, model the returns of each, and recommend the one that fits your goals.
Cross-border protection
A filing and maintenance plan that follows the market, not the map — coordinated with your attorneys so that budget goes to the jurisdictions that matter.
Licensing & deal structuring
Term sheets, royalty models, field-of-use and territory splits, milestone design. We sit on your side of the table through negotiation to signature.
Partners & capital
Introductions to manufacturers, distributors, licensees and funders in the regions where your technology has the strongest case.
Capability building
Training and playbooks for technology-transfer offices, research institutes and innovation agencies that want to build lasting IP capability in-house.
Fig. 3 — How it works
Four steps, one point of contact.
Every engagement starts with a short, non-confidential expression of interest. From there we tell you plainly whether we can help — and how.
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Expression of interest
Tell us who you are, what you have created and what you are hoping to achieve. No confidential detail is needed at this stage.
Ten minutes -
Assessment
Under a confidentiality agreement, we review the IP, the market and the competitive landscape, and report back with our findings.
Under NDA -
Pathway
Together we choose a commercialisation route, agree the terms of our involvement and set the milestones that define success.
Agreed in writing -
Deployment
We run the pathway with you: protection, partners, negotiation and capital — through to revenue and beyond.
Through to market
Fig. 4 — Who we serve
Inventive minds, wherever they are.
We work with individuals and institutions at every stage, from a first provisional filing to a mature portfolio that has never been put to work.
41
Independent inventors
You have built something new and need to know what it is worth, how to protect it and who might take it to market.
42
Universities & research institutes
Your researchers produce more than your technology-transfer office can carry. We add capacity, reach and commercial experience.
43
Start-ups & growing companies
Your IP is your balance sheet. We help you structure, license and leverage it as you expand into new markets.
44
Governments & development agencies
You are building an innovation economy. We help design the programmes and institutions that let local IP compete globally.
Fig. 5 — How we work
Principles we do not trade away.
Commercialisation is a long game played on trust. These are the commitments we bring to every engagement.
Innovator first
The people who created the value should keep a fair share of it. We structure every deal with that as the starting point.
Borderless by default
We assume the right partner, market or funder may be on another continent — and plan accordingly from day one.
Plain terms
No jargon as a moat. You will understand what you are signing, what it costs and what happens if things change.
The long view
A patent lasts twenty years. We optimise for the life of the asset, not the next quarter.
Fig. 6 — Questions
Frequently asked.
If your question is not answered here, get in touch and we will answer it directly.
What is an expression of interest (EOI)?
It is a short form that introduces you and your IP to us. It is not a contract and creates no obligation on either side. We use it to decide whether, and how, we can be useful to you.
What kinds of intellectual property do you work with?
Patents and patent applications are the core of our work, along with the know-how and trade secrets that surround them. We also work with registered designs, plant varieties, software and trade marks where they form part of a commercial package.
Do I need a granted patent before approaching you?
No. Many engagements begin at the provisional or pre-filing stage, when decisions about what and where to file have the greatest effect on value. If you have not filed anything yet, say so in your EOI and keep the technical detail out of it.
Is what I send you confidential?
The EOI is designed to be non-confidential: describe what your invention does, not how it does it. Before we look at anything enabling or unpublished, we put a confidentiality agreement in place with you.
What does it cost?
Submitting an EOI and the initial conversation that follows are free. The terms of any further engagement depend on the pathway and are agreed in writing before work begins.
Which countries do you work in?
Our work is cross-border by design. We take on projects wherever the innovator is based, and pursue partners and markets wherever the IP has the strongest commercial case.
Are you a law firm or patent attorney?
No. We focus on commercialisation, and work alongside your patent attorneys and legal advisers — or help you find suitable ones in the jurisdictions you need.
How long does commercialisation take?
It varies widely with the technology, the sector and the pathway. A licence for a mature technology can close in months; a spin-out built around early-stage research is a multi-year effort. Our assessment will give you a realistic timeline before you commit.
Start here
Have something worth taking further?
Tell us about it in an expression of interest, send a quick message below, or write to us at info@ipfutures.org.