Growth financing with IP

The EPO supports entrepreneurs, decision-makers and investors in technology-driven businesses.

Throughout the year, numerous online activities are organised to support strategic decision-making, based on case studies and best practice in IP management. Examples are found at epo.org/business-forum.

IP is a key value driver at any stage of a technology-driven business, no matter whether you are a startup, a growth business or ready to exit. A strong IP portfolio plays a major role in fundraising, but also offers a venture multiple business model options. One such model is licensing the company's IP, ideally related to a (de facto or de jure) industry standard to ensure wide adoption and solid licensing revenues. Standard licensing programmes of this sort have been successfully applied by large companies such as Philips and Sony for CD and DVD formats, and in the fields of Bluetooth and NFC.

This case study demonstrates that young ventures too can play a key role in standard licensing programmes. Easelink was founded in 2016 in Graz to develop Matrix Charging® – an automatic conductive e-vehicle charging solution. An extensive patent portfolio has been developed, and the solution has won the support many leading car OEMs. They are now jointly making the technology the future charging standard for electrical vehicles through the Matrix Charging Interest Group, involving companies like Audi and Nissan.

Both the founder and CEO of Easelink and the Chaiman of the Matrix Charging Interest Group will discuss the origins of the company, how the IP portfolio was developed and how the standardisation process works. The principles of standard licensing programmes and the relevance for new ventures will be discussed.

Using real life cases, business experts present and discuss real life cases and the challenges they have had to overcome, delving into the role and importance of intellectual assets. Each case study provides practical key takeaways, especially for business decision-makers, on how to advance their business using intellectual assets as key value drivers.

These activities are developed in collaboration with the LESI.
 

Registration is now open.