Managing IP-Related Tensions Between Universities and Spin-Offs

Alexander A. Fink (), Joshua Arbter and Stephan M. Wagner ()
Additional contact information
Alexander A. Fink: ETH Zurich
Joshua Arbter: McKinsey & Company
Stephan M. Wagner: ETH Zurich

A chapter in Intellectual Property Management for Start-ups, 2023, pp 321-338 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract Intellectual property (IP) is a critical asset for the growth of university spin-offs. Since the IP usually belongs to the parent university, spin-offs must find an agreement on how to access it. However, there is little evidence on how universities’ technology transfer offices (TTOs) and spin-offs find this agreement. This study aims to shed light on this process. Drawing on four Swiss and German TTOs and 12 related spin-offs, the authors provide insights into navigating through this process. The data reveal that both parties face four critical tensions while negotiating: (1) TTO’s success might hamper spin-offs’ success; (2) TTO owns the IP but is no IP protection advisor; (3) need for standardized, yet tailored processes; (4) spin-off’s independence, yet further dependence on the university. The authors further determine implications from this study that help to overcome these tensions.

Keywords: University spin-off; Technology transfer office; Intellectual property (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:mgmchp:978-3-031-16993-9_17

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/9783031169939

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-16993-9_17

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Management for Professionals from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().