Citing Struggling Economy, e-IP Waives all Fees for Online IP Marketplace
E-IP, a company started last year to create an online intellectual property marketplace, said this week that it has decided to waive all fees to list technologies available for licensing on its website.
The company said that there will no longer be listing fees, transaction fees, commissions, success fees, or any other fees to post technologies on its site, regardless of how many IP assets a customer wishes to list.
E-IP said that with the elimination of the fees, it will be enhancing its screening process to ensure that the quality of its postings is maintained.
Since e-IP introduced the website, TechTransferOnline, in February of last year, it has gradually adjusted its fee policy. Under the site’s original model, all users were charged to list their IP for licensing, but individuals shopping for IP were allowed to browse the site for free (see BTW, 2/13/08).
In June, e-IP said that it would change the model by offering its site free to all non-profit organizations wishing to list their IP on the site, to better align with the mission of tech-transfer offices at non-profit institutions (see BTW, 6/18/08).
In a statement this week, e-IP CEO Christophe Sevrain said that “in this tough economy, when companies and research organizations are trying to boost their revenues by selling or licensing intellectual property, we have decided to do our part, and make it easier for organizations to sell or license their IP.”
Sevrain said that the site currently has more than 50,000 available patent families listed.
UW-Milwaukee Garners $500K from Bradley Foundation for Catalyst Grants
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Research Foundation said this week that the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation will fund up to $500,000 in new catalyst grants in 2009.
The catalyst grant program, which started in late 2007, provides seed funding for research projects at UWM that have strong commercial potential and potential to impact the local economy.
Projects are selected based on their scientific merit as judged by outside experts, as well as on their potential for creating university-corporate partnerships, intellectual property, and startup companies, UWM said.
Support from the Bradley Foundation allowed the university to fund seven catalyst grants last year totaling $500,000. The UWM Research Foundation will recommend new grants for funding to the Bradley Foundation this summer.
Since its inception, the catalyst grant program has funded 10 projects totaling $670,000 with support from the Bradley Foundation and Rockwell Automation.