Dr Neil Bradshaw Director of Enterprise

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Dr Neil BradshawDirector of Enterprise

• The role of IPR as seen by the academic community
  
• LES Annual Conference, Bristol,
• June 24, 2004

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University of Bristol

• Integrated Research and Enterprise Development
  Division
• Supports an integrated portfolio of activity
• Institutional research strategy
• Research funding and business development
• eg EU Fp6 support
• Research Contracts
• IP Protection
• Exploitation
• Licensing
• Spinout company formation
• Incubation
• Enterprise learning and culture

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Today

• Classical view of Universities role
• Changes in the 80s
• Industry Backlash?
• National Innovation Systems
• Myths of University Commercialisation
• The University Response past and future

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Classical view of Universities role

• Creation and publication of basic or core
  knowledge
• Transfer of knowledge through teaching
• Graduates as knowledge transfer agents
• Commercialisation a threat to core mission
• Global peer group
• Professional bureaucracies
• collections of individuals united by the need
  for car parking and accommodation
• anonymous Venture Capitalist

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Changes in the 80s

• US Bayh Dole Act 1980 - the Magna Carta of
  Technology Transfer?
• Ownership of IP
• Remit of University
• US and SME centric
• License only
• Impact and change in US
• British Technology Group role in 1985
• UK University ownership
• Changes in UK less restrictive than US

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Industry backlash?

• Legal framework biased to Universities
• Universities overvalue IP
• We can exploit IP only 5 of the product
• Bureaucracy and speed of action
• we have to walk away
• Inventor ownership syndrome

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National Innovation Systems

• Basic Science as a major driver of a linear
  innovation process is this correct?
• UK Strategy for Science Engineering and
  Technology 2002
• a tradition of scientific discovery less
  successful in capitalising on earlier waveswe
  must not allow this opportunity to elude us now
• Clusters and communities promote tacit and
  codified knowledge flows and diffusion
• Multiple actors Universities, SMEs, corporates,
  financiers, professionals

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Myths of University Commercialisation

• Universities are a vast untapped source of
  intellectual property
• Researchers despise the concept of business and
  wealth generation
• Every time we license a technology we are losing
  everything
• European Universities are way behind their US
  counterparts

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The University Response past

• Reactive defensive
• Limited skilled staff and resources
• IP leakage publication drivers
• Patent everything - we can decide what to do
  later
• Value and wealth leaking away
• Industry are enemies to be beaten down
• Spinout companies are best
• Conservative view of risk and liability
• US knows everything, just follow them

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The University Response now and future

• Recognition of their role in the knowledge
  economy
• Market driven licensing
• Intelligent demand?
• Reduction to Practice/Proof of Concept
• add value to raw IP
• IPR facilitates research collaboration
• Industry needs security for commercialisation
• Realistic expectations on wealth generation
• Systematic evaluation of knowledge
• Sharing of tech transfer learning

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Conclusion

• Academic Community now moving to a more mature
  understanding of the value of IP
• It will never fund a large proportion of basic
  research
• It is required by exploiters so must be secured
• supports collaboration and knowledge flows
• Regional and National Innovation
• A new model for the University role in the
  economy

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At the University of Bristol-

• Dr Neil Bradshaw
• neil.bradshaw_at_bristol.ac.uk
• www.bristol.ac.uk/research