Licensing

Licensing enables Isis to maintain ownership, and therefore control, of its IP whilst at the same time generating royalty income from the use of its IP by industry. A licence is an agreement involving the transfer of rights from one party ("the licensor") to the other ("the licensee"). These rights commonly control the use (for copying, manufacture, sale etc.) of an IPR (a patent, copyright material, confidential knowhow etc.).

A licence deal may include a lump sum payment for the right to exploit the invention (either exclusively or non exclusively), usually in a particular market or for a particular purpose (referred to as the "field"), plus a royalty on the licensee's sales. The deal may also include a research contract with the University, plus a consultancy arrangement under which the inventor gives the company assistance in setting up work in its own laboratories. The Research Services Office (RSO) manages research contracts for the University. Oxford University Consulting Ltd has been established to assist in the management of consultancy and service provision activities.

Licensing can be a source of significant income. As a point of interest, the Financial Times reported (16th July 1992) that Texas Instruments made more money in two years collecting royalties on its semiconductor patents than was made from selling semiconductors. In 1997 Stanford University made $50 million from royalties alone.

A licensed product offers risk-free income to an inventor, who does not need to devote further financial resources to its exploitation.