Future-proofing your business by empowering Intellectual Property

• The client is a SME (small or medium enterprise) in the household appliances sector
• Due to a strategic reorientation the number of invention disclosures and applications increased significantly
• Organizational structure, operational procedures and capacity distribution needed to be adjusted in the most effective and efficient manner
• Smart home related developments required the IP department to rethink its service offers and current tasks

All IP department employees, company internal customers and stakeholders were involved in a design thinking approach to jointly develop the future IP department and to define the necessary measures to reach it, based on a current situation analysis; the following questions have been answered:

• Are we conducting the right tasks in the right way?
• What does the internal customer demand with respect to solutions and working habits?
• Is the IP department structured in the right way and equipped with sufficient capacity and competence to fulfill the future tasks?

• An objectified picture on the current situation within the IP department and the internal customer requirements
• The IP department’s future ambition based on a creativity workshop
• An objectified description of the client-specific, realistic best situation that is possible to be reached
• A catalogue of measures to reach the desired status focusing on efficiency, effectiveness and IP awareness 
• Additionally the awareness for IP has been strengthened within the entire company

• The client is a leading player in live video streaming services in the adult entertainment industry
• Constantly improving its online streaming platform, the client recently faced litigation threats by US players
• As a response, the client intended to secure its core software developments via international patent protection
• To do so, the client first intended to gain insights into the ambient patenting activity, litigation events and innovativeness levels of its competitors for selected technologies

• Using a custom questionnaire, a technology matrix was built in cooperation with the client’s subject-matter experts, reflecting the client’s priority technology and R&D areas
• For each of the technology matrix elements, patent search queries were developed and improved in multiple iteration rounds of results revision
• Final patent search results were imported into Dennemeyer’s IP analysis tool in order to generate the insights, to perform selected analytics and to highlight certain innovative patents

• Within three weeks, the client obtained a comprehensive technology matrix that is fully searchable (e.g. status, litigation events, assignee) and that reveals where which patent belongs to with respect to technology
• With the report, the client understands where the litigation risks are highest, and in which jurisdiction(s) it is most likely to occur
• Using key patent metrics, we identify technology leaders and cutting-edge inventions that inform the client on the level of innovativeness required for patenting
• Analyzing technology trends and key applicants, the client is made aware of what its innovation efforts should focus on and potential cooperation partners from neighboring industries

• The client is a global player in the medical technology with a second follower strategy. This strategy has been changed and the company planned to become the innovation leader in their industry sector.
• The IP department acted as a mostly reactive supporting function not being responsible for all company divisions and with insufficient resources to become more active
• The client asked Dennemeyer for an unbiased view on its own IP function to answer the questions
  • Is the IP thinking and strategy up to date and how is the strategic fit to innovation lead ambitions?
  • Where are strengths and weaknesses?

• Dennemeyer applied its IP performance assessment approach consisting of three major steps
  1. IP base data analysis: Statistical analysis of patent portfolio with respect to basic patent characteristics
  2. IP audit: Interview based assessment covering > 350 questions clustered in 6-10 dimensions
  3. X-Assessment: Compares internal (IP department) and external perspective (cross-functional)

• The client received a clear and in depth audit result providing
  • Strengths and weaknesses of the IP function in comparison to industry best practices (benchmark)
  • Areas of improvement with concrete measures to overcome weaknesses
  • Transparent and objective report to communicate need for resources and greater organizational integration
  • 8-10 initiatives how to lead the transformation with relevant effects for the organization

• The client is an investment company headquartered in the UK
• The potential investment target is a research-driven company in the battery technology sector with multiple IP rights seeking a loan by pledging their IP portfolio as collateral
• The IP portfolio has been valuated by the target’s IP law firm, but the investor seeks an objective and independent IP valuation

• Within two work packages Dennemeyer consultants independently valuated the trademark and technical IP rights portfolio
• Due to the valuation objective an income based valuation approach with a Relief-from-Royalty method was applied
• In close collaboration with the target company legal, technical and market valuation factors were assessed to value the patent portfolio based on a reliable business case

• Dennemeyer provided an objective valuation on the target’s IP portfolio as an independent assessor
• The client was very satisfied with the transparent valuation approach and got a clear view on:
  • The monetary value of the IP Portfolio and each single IPR
  • Strengths and weaknesses of the IP portfolio in comparison to the technological competition
• Thus, the client is enabled to make an informed investment decision with a better understanding of the target’s actual value, associated risks and technology landscape

• The client is a player in the civil aviation industry
• The company was seeking for not yet protected technologies and new solutions in their key technology areas of interest
• The client asked Dennemeyer to identify new technologies with high potential for patent generation
• The client asked Dennemeyer to create and draft these patents and to coordinate an IPR Strategy development

Dennemeyer applied a four phases – each project phase contributed to the objective: generate new technologies and patent applications

• Phase 1: Definition and selection of the key technology of interest for the company
• Phase 2: IP Creation Process to empower the joint teams in five workshop steps to solve problems faster, to improve technologies and to create higher technology and patent values
• Phase 3 & 4: Patent application drafting and IP Strategy development to optimize technology protection and to leverage the business model

Dennemeyer provided a comprehensive IP Creation & Innovation workshop series:

• Existing technologies have been analyzed and improved
• New technologies have been defined, novelty has been assessed and possible inventions have been developed
• Patent applications have been placed
• A 360° protection strategy has been set up and the business model has been adapted