Why Use Patent Information to Promote the Innovation Process?
Since patents establish the “state of the art” in any particular applied technology, at any point in time they define the starting point for subsequent innovation advancement. When patent prior art is deeply assimilated throughout the organization, higher quality innovations will emerge more quickly. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)i has found that patent information is used: – To Promote Creating Thinking and Problem Solving – To Guide Strategic Management of Research and Development (R&D) – To support management decisions related to Licensing and Litigation Strategy – To Value Intellectual Assets for Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) Companies are often slow to build innovation strategies that rely heavily on patents, many times because patents appear to be too complicated to understand, because management thinks too much time will be spent reading patents and not inventing, or management thinks that access to patent information is too costly. The earliest patents rec
