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Assignment Due Diligence: Unassigned Assets
Spotting bad behavior in startup companies. It is heartbreaking to see bad behavior by ‘inventors’ and their startup companies, but it occurs over and over again. Let this lesson be an example of the things you need to check anytime you are doing due diligence on an early stage company. First pass at due diligence…
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Voice of the Customer
The only metric of patent value[1] – and business in general. Our business is to loan money using patents as collateral. My most frequent question: How do I put a value on patents? It all comes down to the voice of the customer. If I can capture the reason why someone bought your product –…
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Showing Up and the Green Beans
My mantra for grinding out the day to day. At coffee the other day, someone said that showing up on time was the lowest cost, easiest way to get off to a good start. I have always believed in the simple mantra of “show up.” The mantra of “show up” is really about putting in…
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Patent Attorneys Do Not Live with Their Mistakes
The Feedback Problem in Patent Law. Patent attorneys typically have zero feedback about the quality of their work product. This is an inherent weakness of the whole patent system. The attorneys do not have to live with their mistakes, because patent litigation and patent transactions happen long after their work product has ended. The Long…
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Due Diligence and IP Valuation Webinar
The Angel Capital Association hosted a webinar on Due Diligence and IP Valuation. In this webinar, I discussed an IP-backed loan for Ivani, who has an extensive IP portfolio. Note that this is a public version of our analysis of Ivani’s portfolio. Here’s the complete deck for download. We have an investor-specific due diligence package…
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IP-Backed Lending In Asia
Intellectual property-backed lending, particularly patent-backed lending, has been growing in Asia, particularly China and Korea. Both countries have made extensive efforts to use IP as a business resource for growing their economies. Maybe the US can use part of this playbook? China’s IP Emphasis is a Huge Asset to SMEs Seeking Financing. $67B in loans…
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Why You Cannot Hire a Patent Attorney Who Worked for a Competitor
I talk to countless patent holders, and I often hear that their patent attorney did all this work for a direct competitor before doing their patents. Somehow, the client seems to think this is a good thing. It is not. It is always a bad thing to hire a patent attorney who has previously worked…
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The Problems with Your Patent Attorney Owning Stock in Your Company
The Ethical Quandary Patent attorneys are entrusted with the responsibility of safeguarding their clients’ intellectual property. This fiduciary duty requires them to act in the best interest of their clients, providing unbiased and objective legal advice. However, when a patent attorney owns stock in a client’s company, their financial interests conflict with their professional obligations.…
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Patent Attorneys’ Misguided Obsession About Costs
Hand wringing amongst patent attorneys show their misguided view of their clients. Patent attorneys work in a bubble that is completely hidden from laypersons, but is an incredibly loud echo chamber. An example is the current obsession and endless handwringing over the USPTO’s DOCX filing requirement. The issue is that the USPTO prefers that you…
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Every Word Hurts You: Patent Claims
Every Word in the Description Hurts You, and the Claims Hurt You, Too. The length of the claims really matters. The length of the specification is important – but only up to a point. There was an old joke in the Patent Office that when a claim is longer than your hand, it must be…