WHOI-90-52

In the field of ocography, spin-off firms may be the most prevalent form of TTO. Many
small oceaographic equipment firms are spin-offs from ocographic resech institutions
(Broadus, Hoagland and Kite-Powell, 1988). At WHOI, the Public Information Offce has
estimated the tota annual revenues produce by commercial spin-off firms from WHOI at
approximately $50 milion, a figure of the same magnitude as WHOI's annua budget. Whether
this phenomenon is widespread in the field of ocography as a whole remains to be
determined.
A number of universities and other non-profit organizations have established external TTOs as
nonprofit Technology Transfer Foundations. Unless profits are plowed back into resech at the
parent institution, these foundations may be found ineligible for nonprofit ta exemptions. In
many cases, these foundations are established to provide a buffer between a nonprofit resech
institution and a commercial venture, thus limiting liabilty and proteting the parent's ta exempt
status. Among the oldest of these foundations, the Wiscnsin Alumni Resech Foundation
(W ARF) recntly has expanded its role beyond trditional IPMO functions to the creation of a
fully taable subsidiar, which engages in a joint venture to design, manufacture, and market
heang aids. Profits eaed by the subsidiar are added to W ARF's income; all net income from
W ARF is distrbuted back to the university in the same manner as intellectual property royalties
are distrbuted in other institutions.
Parnerships accunt for approximately 50 percent of industr sponsored resech conducted at
universities (TCF, 1984). One form of
parnership, the R&D Limited Parnership, has recived
speial attention becuse of its limite liabilty for investors. R&D limite parerships are
strctured so that one "genera" parer manages, supplies tehnology and other capita, and,
most importtly, assumes liabilty for the actions of
the parership (Reams, 1986). "Limited"
parners supply financial contrbutions or technology in return for an equity share and immediate
ta wnte-offs for investing in "resech and experimentation." Universities or nonprofit reseach
institutions generaly parcipate as limited parers, primary becuse of concerns that their
endowments could be prime tagets for potential commercial product liabilty suits.
It is unknown whether ocographic resech institutions have established R&D limited
parerships as a meas for tehnology trasfer. As an institutional form, R&D limited
parerships appe to hold great promise both for attcting resech funds and for
commercialzing resech results. However, considerable effort is involved in the organization
of such parerships, and to date, the verdict on their final succss is still out.
Conclusions
As a first step toward an understading of technology transfer in the marne setor, we have
focuse on speific linkages between institutions in the field of ocography (WO!) and
industr. Some preliminar conclusions are presente here.
The proporton of industral support for basic scientific resech in ocography probably is
smaller than the national average for all disciplines. (Estimated direct and indirect industral
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