Making intellectual property work for business - World Intellectual ...

Setting up IP services | General principles
Tailoring IP
services
according to
the market
and client
Determining
and financing
a budget
Marketing
IP services
Evaluating and
benchmarking
services
14 Making intellectual property work for business
In the IP field, useful partnerships can be made with, for example, government
offices responsible for patents, trademarks, designs and copyright (see WIPO directory
of national offices at http://www.wipo.int/directory/en/), patent and trademark attorneys,
universities and institutes of learning, technology and innovation development
agencies, and business and professional associations. With respect to the financial
potential of IP, business membership organizations can also work with experts in IP
valuation, professional investors and lenders, and licensing specialists.
Business membership organizations should tailor services to fill gaps by looking at
what IP services already exist and to what extent the existing services, whether feebased
or free, effectively meet the needs of the targeted clients/businesses. Market
gaps can be identified by conducting market surveys or asking the staff who are
in close contact with the targeted clients/businesses. Taking into account existing
services will allow business membership organizations to more accurately position
themselves and avoid conflicts with existing IP services providers, some of whom may
be members, or partners. Orienting IP services towards the customer will help business
membership organizations to tailor them appropriately; delivering an IP service to
an SME or an innovator will be different from delivering that service to a multinational
company. Customer-orientation can be achieved through conducting user satisfaction
surveys or again, by obtaining feedback from the staff who are usually in direct contact
with the targeted clients/businesses.
The format and type of IP services to be designed will also depend on the organization’s
objectives, budget and available human resources.
Ideally, a regular budget should be obtained for providing new IP services as this will
allow the accumulation of experience and knowledge, which is so important in this
area. A regular budget for permanent staff will also reduce the necessity for constant
retraining of staff. Pooling resources with partners on specific projects will also help
reduce costs. A detailed budget will help prioritize IP services and help determine
where partnering with other organizations may be necessary.
With respect to obtaining outside funding for IP services which are not self-financing;
business membership organizations can investigate local, regional, and national
government funding opportunities.
Governments are increasingly funding intermediaries to implement programmes
that provide training and information to business owners. Developments banks
(e.g. Inter-American Development Bank) are also a possible source of funds, as is
the European Commission, which has several programmes supporting innovationpromotion
projects. Worldwide, an increasing number of national, provincial and
municipal governments and some non-governmental organizations are also providing
funds, amongst others, to chambers for creating or improving IP services.
In the results of the European survey 9 mentioned above (see table above), ease of
access and identification was one of the top criteria mentioned by users of IPR services.
This highlights the importance of devoting sufficient efforts to promoting existing
and new IP services to the target audience.
Constantly evaluating the services against its original goals and client satisfaction, will
ensure that the IP services provided by the business membership organizations will
continue to strengthen in value over time. Benchmarking with other organizations providing
similar services will also provide fresh ideas and help improve services.
9 “Benchmarking National and Regional Support Services for SMEs in the Field of Intellectual and Industrial
Property”, Austrian Institute for SME Research: 2007