IP Portfolio Development

Building an intellectual property portfolio creates a potential for increasing the space a business occupies in its market. While a patent, trade mark or design application is a necessary step toward securing exclusive rights to an invention or brand, this alone may not provide sufficient returns or carry significant commercial weight. As the strength of a portfolio increases so should commercial leverage of the business.

In order to develop a portfolio needs to be managed and regularly reviewed against business objectives (see IP audit). We work with clients to define and establish the mechanisms for portfolio development and as part of this process we assess various factors to determine how IP portfolio enhancement can be achieved:

  • Will a development enhance or add to the overall commercial objectives of the business?
  • Are the benefits of the development likely to outweigh the cost of securing intellectual property protection?
  • Will filing for intellectual property protection create barriers for entry to the market or make it more difficult for competitors to operate?
  • Will filing for intellectual property protection enhance the likelihood of securing collaborations, further funding or provide commercial leverage, for example by providing licensing opportunities?
  • Will subsequent intellectual property assets provide back-up should a part of the existing intellectual property be challenged by a third party?

As an example, we can consider a patent which provides exclusive rights in relation to an invention. After filing an initial application further improvements or developments surrounding the invention might be produced, which may need additional protection to retain their value. In addition, design, trade marks, copyright works or domain names developed in conjunction with or resulting from the initial invention could also add value to the portfolio, particularly if protected and exploited.

Due to the importance of a strong intellectual property portfolio many businesses choose to run an intellectual property committee to actively manage and review the portfolio as it develops in order to ensure that it adds value to the business and is aligned with commercial goals.