1. Commons, Networks, and Technology Transfer Gerald Barnett Director, Intellectual Property Management University of California, Santa Cruz

2. 1. Light Bulbs Woodward & Evans, 1874 Edison 1875, 1880, 1883, 1889 ~$3b industry ~10,000 employees ~60 companies “slow on uptake of new technology” ~1200 US patents since 1976

3. Lighting Industry Products Standards “Rim” of proprietary innovation Infrastructure – Design, manufacture, marketing, purchase, replacement, repair, disposal, regulation Upstream and downstream industries Collectively: a technology infrastructure

4. Change is Difficult Who should drive change? – Government? – Inventors? – Investors? – Companies? – Public? When is change “progress”? – Science – Intellectual property – Societal well being

5. 2. Informatics of Invention Technology transfer involves: – Inventions – Invention infrastructure (informatics, intangibles) Relationships – Contracts – Sponsors Teamwork – Know-how – Trade secrets Intellectual property – Documents – Data – Software

6. Patentable Bar Date Value to External Audience A A R R R P R A A R R R Scholarly Publication Patentable Invention R P P R A P Research Result Research Artifact Publication Promising Technology Research Project Assets Time

7. Patentable Bar Date Value to External Audience Scholarly Publication Patentable Invention R R A Research Result Research Artifact Promising Technology Patent Entrepreneurship P P Publication Time

8. Patentable Bar Date Value to External Audience A A P A A Scholarly Publication Patentable Invention R P P External Use R A P Research Result Research Artifact Publication Promising Technology Invention Informatics Time

9. Patent Entrepreneurship Patent entrepreneurship uses dominant patent positions to attract private investment to motivate infrastructure change Identify inventions Assess for commercial potential Secure patent rights Offer to prospective commercialization partners License exclusively

10. Informatics Entrepreneurship Informatics entrepreneurship uses strategies of commons and network to attract broad-based use to motivate infrastructure change Identify assets Form working relationships Assess relationships for growth Secure patent, copyright, and trademark rights License non-exclusively (in commons) and sole (beyond commons)

11. 3. Commons and Networks Commons – Regulated shared resource – Coordinated use within commons – Danger of exploitation at expense of all Network – Pattern of relationships among agents – May include collaborators and competitors – Propagates ideas and information – May become too “strong”

12. Externalities Action of an agent that affects the well being of others without a business relationship – Example: telephone – Importance of critical mass – Problem of congestion Informatics gains value across number of users of the information – Software, databases, standard techniques

13. Strategies Provide access to information Create working relationships Rely on succession of findings Provide instructional services Extend audience to channels Establish qualified leads for future invention Catalyze exchange among participants Form de facto standards Use recipients to evaluate early technology

14. Affiliates Programs Attach to research program One co-operative agreement — OR— Multiple affiliates – Consortium (research) – Technology access program (acquisition) Focus on efficient management of relationships (rather than high-value opportunities)

15. Commons and Initiative Cooperate – Preserve common resources – Provide for efficient allocation – Tends to monoculture Defect – Drive change – Appropriate investment – Tends to fragmentation and self-interest

16. Creating the Commons Informatics management – Create innovation commons and networks – Generate sustainable program income – Create infrastructure for competitive change Defragment research patent rights – Dedicate to public domain or standard – Cross license – Form standards – Inter-institutional agreements – License NERF

17. Crossing the Commons Innovation commons must have exits – Attract private investment – Permit “free market” enclosure – Manage for improvements that transform networks to markets Manage exits to promote progress – Potentially at odds with private benefit – Balance exclusion with advance

18. Challenges for Knowledge Economy Develop informatics management practices – Create innovation commons as interim step – Exploit the role of networks – Balance freedom with authority Expand patent management practices – Reserve commons rights (make, use) – Cross-license with non-profits and industry – Create pull markets