IP management, valuation and strategy the focus of a new reporter from BVR

Intangible assets are now the primary business drivers in the global economy—and measurement and valuation issues are central to corporate success. That’s why the IP Value Publishing division of BVR is launching a comprehensive, new monthly reporter, IP Management & Valuation (IPMV). IPMV focuses on valuation not only for appraisers, but for chief IP officers, lawyers and other stakeholders who must identify, value, protect, and grow IP assets.

The premiere issue includes articles by top experts on:

• Indirect profits from copyright infringement...
• Fundamental principles of patent value...
• The 14 “warning signs” when valuing your IP portfolio...
• Exclusive analysis of the most significant recent IP litigation, including the Oracle/SAP decision...
• A new professional certification in intangible asset valuation... and,
• How the America Invents Act impacts valuation, complete with implementation dates

IP Value Wire subscribers can get the current issue of the IPMV for free. For more information and to download the current issue, click here.

Patent valuation is needed to properly communicate alternative strategies to the C-suite

In a podcast publicized by Legal IQ, Adrian Spillman, Global Head of IP at Intercell, discussed the need to make the tough decisions with respect to patents, and the importance of IP valuation to triaging those patents. Having a good idea of what the income stream from a patent is likely to be allows for the creation of a cost/benefit analysis, and that is essential in deciding what to and what not to patent. In addition, knowing the value of discreet IP holdings allows IP managers to communicate the overall value of a patent portfolio to “C”-level management.

Readers can listen to the full interview podcast and read the transcript here. The February issue of BVR’s IP Management & Valuation will feature a must-read article by Mike Lloyd of Griffith Hack and Doris Speilthenner of Ambercite on how IP managers can derive an objective opinion on patent quality.

The value of a copyrighted asset may depend upon the likelihood of infringement

Plagiarism Today has listed seven factors that affect copyright infringement:

1. The Medium. For example, text attracts more illegal copying.
2. Popularity.
3. Target Audience. It appears some demographics have worse tendencies than others.
4. Cost.
5. Ease of Access. If it is already easily obtainable, there will be little reason to infringe.
6. Licensing. Though it is up for debate, the article takes the position a clear path to legal licensing reduces infringement. To see how copyright assets are licensed and get a feel for royalty rates, readers should review Royalty Rates in Copyright Agreements: A BVR Guide to Full-Text Licensing Agreements.
7. Copyright Enforcement. Just as with any IP, the ability and willingness to prosecute adds to the value.
   

Analysts and copyright asset holders can run down this checklist and get a good feel of the likelihood of infringement affecting the asset’s value over the long term.

IP valuation project managers should make sure team members are all playing by the same rules

At a pre-IP valuation meeting, set and communicate the standards all will be working under. In BVR’s Guide to Intellectual Property Valuation, Mike Pellegrino lays out fundamental procedures before valuing IP, instructive to IP owners and analysts alike:

1. Establish and communicate the valuation project type. At a project kickoff meeting, the project manager discusses the type of valuation being performed.  Is it a non-certified valuation calculation?  Is it an appraisal that will conform to the USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice) standards?
2. Chose the value standard. The project manager decides the value standard (fair value, fair market value, etc.). While the due diligence procedures for IP valuation do not vary as a result of the standard chosen, downstream activities such as market research, valuation modeling, and valuation reporting will depend on the value standard.
3. Set key project milestone dates and establish the overall project schedule.
4. Divide up and assign engagement tasks.

How to protect the IP value of photographic images

Jeremy Nicholl says to register photographic images at the US Copyright Office. “The U.S. may be a Berne signatory, but in practice the USA has a dual copyright system: major protection and zero protection.” Unregistered images are still copyrighted, but the remedies are quite limited. Registration carries with it statutory damages of $150,000 per infringement, plus legal costs.  Valuators of such assets need to ask one more question: Is EVERY frame registered?

Watermarking is a technique photographers hate. A strong one ruins an image; a weak one is too easy to remove. The best practice to protect value is to place copyright information immediately next to the photography.

Finally, if you catch an infringer, document it.  Screenshots are useful, as is downloading web pages to capture source code from the infringing site.

There is value in the IP of photography. Licenses in ktMINE reflect royalty rates of up to 10% of gross profit for non-exclusive use of photography. That value should be protected.