The Dynamics of the Transfer and Renewal of Patents

This paper explores a new dataset of transfers of patents recorded at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The aim of the paper is twofold. First, a number of patterns are presented. For instance, the probability of a patent being traded monotonically decreases as a function of its age except at the renewal dates. Immediately after renewal, this probability discontinuously increases. Among patents of the same age, the probability of being traded and the probability of being renewed is increasing in the total number of citations received. Moreover, previously traded patents, and especially the recently traded, are more likely to be traded and less likely to be allowed to expire than patents not previously traded. Second, the paper extends Pakes and Schankerman\\'s patent renewal framework in order to develop a model of the transfer and renewal of patents. Two new key features of the model are motivated by the patterns documented: gains from reallocating patents to more productive firms and costs of adopting technology.Markets for Technology; Patents; Transfer of Patents

How redeployable are patent assets? Evidence from failed startups

Entrepreneurial firms are important sources of patented inventions. Yet little is known about what happens to patents "released" to the market when startups fail. This study provides a first look at the frequency and speed with which patents originating from failed startups are redeployed to new owners, and whether the value of patents is tied to the original venture and team. The evidence is based on 1,766 U.S. patents issued to 285 venture capital-backed startups that disband between 1988 and 2008 in three innovation-intensive sectors: medical devices, semiconductors, and software. At odds with the view that the resale market for patented inventions is illiquid, we find that most patents from these startups are sold, are sold quickly, and remain "alive" through renewal fee payment long after the startups are shuttered. The patents tend to be purchased by other operating companies in the same sector, and retain value beyond the original venture and team. We do find, however, that the patents and people sometimes move jointly to a new organization following the dissolution of the original venture, and explore the conditions under which such co-movement is more likely. The study provides new evidence on a phenomenon-of active markets for buying and selling patents-underexplored in the strategy literature and consequential for both entrepreneurial and established firms.Accepted manuscrip

Trading and Enforcing Patent Rights

We study how the market for innovation affects enforcement of patent rights. Conventional wisdom associates the gains from trade with comparative advantage in manufacturing or marketing. We show that these gains imply that patent transactions should increase litigation risk. We identify a new source of gains from trade, comparative advantage in patent enforcement, and show that transactions driven by this motive should reduce litigation. Using data on trade and litigation of individually-owned patents in the U.S., we exploit variation in capital gains tax rates as an instrument to identify the causal effect of trade on litigation. We find that taxes strongly affect patent transactions, and that reallocation of patent rights reduces litigation risk on average, but the impact is heterogeneous. We show that patents with larger potential gains from trade are more likely to change ownership, suggesting that the market for innovation is efficient, and the impact of trade on litigation depends on characteristics of the transactions.

Patent collateral, investor commitment, and the market for venture lending

This paper investigates the market for lending to technology startups (i.e., venture lending) and examines two mechanisms that may facilitate trade within it: (1) the ‘salability’ of patent collateral; and (2) the credible commitment of existing equity investors. We find that intensified trading in the secondary patent market is strongly related to the annual rate of startup lending, particularly for startups with more redeployable patent assets. Moreover, we show that the credibility of venture capitalist commitments to reinvest in their startups’ next round of financing can be critical for startup debt provision. Utilizing the crash of 2000 as a severe and unexpected capital supply shock for VCs, we show that lenders continue to finance startups with recently funded investors better able to credibly commit to refinance their portfolio companies, but withdraw from otherwise-promising projects that may have needed their funds the most. The findings are consistent with predictions of incomplete contracting and financial intermediation theory.Accepted manuscrip

The Dynamics of the Transfer and Renewal of Patents

This paper explores the dynamics of the transfer of U.S. patents and the significance of the initial missallocation of patent property rights. Here we find that the initial missallocation of patent property rights is large and differs substantially across patentees and technology fields. We also find that the probability of a patent being traded depends on a number of factors - the age of the patent, the number of citations received by a given age, the patent generality and whether the patent has been previously traded or not. We will also analyze and interpret this new evidence using a theoretical model of patent transfers and renewal.

Estimating the Gains from Trade in the Market for Innovation: Evidence from the Transfer of Patents

The "market for innovation" — the sale and licensing of patents — is an often discussed source of incentives to invest in R&D. This article presents and estimates a model of the transfer and renewal of patents that, under some assumptions, allows us to quantify the gains resulting from the transfer of patents in the market for innovation. The gains from trade measure the benefits of reallocating the ownership of a patent from the original inventor to a new owner for whom the patent has a higher value. In addition, we study the effect that lowering the costs of technology transfer has on the proportion of patents traded and the gains from trade.

Business Partners, Financing, and the Commercialization of Inventions

This paper studies the effect of business partners on the commercialization of nvention based ventures, and it assesses the relative importance of partners’ human and social capital on commercialization outcomes. Projects run by partnerships were five times more likely to reach commercialization, and they had mean revenues approximately ten times greater than projects run by solo-entrepreneurs. These gross differences may be due both to business partners’ value added and to selection. After controlling for selection effects and observed/unobserved heterogeneity, our smallest estimate of partner value added approximately doubles the probability of commercialization and increases expected revenues by 29% at the sample mean.

Detection of neuronal signatures by means of data-driven tomography

Abstracts from Twenty Second Annual Computational Neuroscience Meeting: CNS*2013. Paris, France. 13-18 July 2013This work was supported by MINECO TIN2012-30883 and TIN-2010-19607

Influence of Reynolds number on theoretical models for trailing vortices

We conduct direct numerical simulations for a NACA0012 airfoil at Reynolds numbers (Re) ranging from 300 to 7000 to determine the wake behavior behind this wing profile. We characterize the structure of the wing-tip vortex, finding a reasonable agreement with experimental results at Re=7000. In addition, we model the trailing vortex theoretically, thus obtaining the parameters for Batchelor’s and Moore and Saffman’s models. We compare the results of the best fitting for the axial vorticity and the azimuthal velocity, finding only small discrepancies. The main contribution of this research work is to study the evolution of these theoretical parameters as function of the Reynolds number. We observe that the wake becomes unstable at Re ≈1200, in agreement with previous results. These instabilities in the wake behind the wing produce a change in the trend of theoretical parameters (keywords: vortex dynamics, trailing vortices, theoretical models).Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Solar UV exposure of Primary Schoolchildren in Valencia, Spain

[EN] To quantify schoolchildren's exposure to ultraviolet erythemal radiation (UVER), personal dosimeters (VioSpor) were used to measure biologically effective ultraviolet (UV) radiation received in the course of their daily school activities. The study took place in two primary schools in Valencia (39 degrees 28'N), Spain, for several weeks from March 2008 until May 2009, with two age groups (6-8 years and 10-11 years) and involved about 47 schoolchildren. The median daily UV exposure values for all age groups and solar height intervals considered in the study ranged from 1.31 to 2.11 standard erythemal doses (SEDs). Individual UV exposure was analyzed as a function of age, gender and dosimeter position. Significant statistical differences were found between different age groups, with the younger age group receiving higher statistically significant UVER exposure. It was also found that boys received significantly higher UVER exposure than girls. It was also noted that shoulder dosimeters registered higher readings than wrist dosimeters. Exposure ratio (ER) is defined as the ratio between the personal dose on a selected anatomical site and the corresponding ambient dose on a horizontal plane. The median ER for all age groups and solar height intervals in the study range from 4.5% to 10.7%, with higher values at lower solar heights.We would like to thank the R&D&I Linguistic Assistance Office, Universidad Politecnica de Valencia (Spain), for granting financial support for the proof-reading of this paper. The research reported here was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science within the research project CGL2007-61813.Serrano, M.; Cañada, J.; Moreno Esteve, J. (2011). Solar UV exposure of Primary Schoolchildren in Valencia, Spain. Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences Photochemical and Photobiological Sciences. 10(4):1-523. https://doi.org/10.1039/C0PP00153HS1523104IARC, IARC monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to humans: solar and ultraviolet radiation, Lyon, 2000, 55Armstrong, B. K., & Kricker, A. (2001). The epidemiology of UV induced skin cancer. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology, 63(1-3), 8-18. doi:10.1016/s1011-1344(01)00198-1B. Armstrong , How sun exposure causes skin cancer: an epidemiological perspective, In Prevention of Skin Cancer, ed by D. Hill, J. M. Elwood and D. R. English, Kluwer Academic, 2005, pp. 89-116Østerlind, A., Tucker, M. A., Stone, B. J., & Jensen, O. M. (1988). The Danish case-control study of cutaneous malignant melanoma. II. Importance of UV-light exposure. International Journal of Cancer, 42(3), 319-324. doi:10.1002/ijc.2910420303Oliveria, S. A. (2005). Sun exposure and risk of melanoma. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 91(2), 131-138. doi:10.1136/adc.2005.086918Wright, C. Y., & Reeder, A. I. (2005). Youth Solar Ultraviolet Radiation Exposure, Concurrent Activities and Sun-protective Practices: A Review. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 81(6), 1331. doi:10.1562/2005-8-19-ir-655Guy, C., Diab, R., & Martincigh, B. (2003). Ultraviolet Radiation Exposure of Children and Adolescents in Durban, South Africa¶. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 77(3), 265. doi:10.1562/0031-8655(2003)0772.0.co;2DIFFEY, B. L., GIBSON, C. J., HAYLOCK, R., & McKINLAY, A. F. (1996). Outdoor ultraviolet exposure of children and adolescents. British Journal of Dermatology, 134(6), 1030-1034. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2133.1996.tb07937.xKimlin, M., & Parisi, A. (2001). Usage of real-time ultraviolet radiation data to modify the daily erythemal exposure of primary schoolchildren. Photodermatology, Photoimmunology and Photomedicine, 17(3), 130-135. doi:10.1034/j.1600-0781.2001.170305.xGies, P., Roy, C., Toomey, S., MacLennan, R., & Watson, M. (1998). Solar UVR Exposures of Primary School Children at Three Locations in Queensland. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 68(1), 78-83. doi:10.1111/j.1751-1097.1998.tb03255.xWright, C. Y., Reeder, A. I., Bodeker, G. E., Gray, A., & Cox, B. (2007). Solar UVR Exposure, Concurrent Activities and Sun-Protective Practices Among Primary Schoolchildren. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 83(3), 749-758. doi:10.1562/2006-08-22-ra-1010Ono, M., Munakata, N., & Watanabe, S. (2005). UV Exposure of Elementary School Children in Five Japanese Cities¶. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 81(2), 437. doi:10.1562/2004-09-06-ra-307.1Thieden, E., Philipsen, P. A., Heydenreich, J., & Wulf, H. C. (2004). UV Radiation Exposure Related to Age, Sex, Occupation, and Sun Behavior Based on Time-Stamped Personal Dosimeter Readings. Archives of Dermatology, 140(2). doi:10.1001/archderm.140.2.197Boldeman, C., Dal, H., & Wester, U. (2004). Swedish pre-school children’s UVR exposure - a comparison between two outdoor environments. Photodermatology, Photoimmunology and Photomedicine, 20(1), 2-8. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0781.2004.00069.xNorval, M., Cullen, A. P., de Gruijl, F. R., Longstreth, J., Takizawa, Y., Lucas, R. M., … van der Leun, J. C. (2007). The effects on human health from stratospheric ozone depletion and its interactions with climate change. Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences, 6(3), 232. doi:10.1039/b700018aMoehrle, M., Dennenmoser, B., & Garbe, C. (2003). Continuous long-term monitoring of UV radiation in professional mountain guides reveals extremely high exposure. International Journal of Cancer, 103(6), 775-778. doi:10.1002/ijc.10884Moehrle, M., & Garbe, C. (2000). Personal UV Dosimetry by Bacillus subtilis Spore Films. Dermatology, 200(1), 1-5. doi:10.1159/000018306Moehrle, M., Heinrich, L., Schmid, A., & Garbe, C. (2000). Extreme UV Exposure of Professional Cyclists. Dermatology, 201(1), 44-45. doi:10.1159/000018428Thieden, E., Agren, M. S., & Wulf, H. C. (2000). The wrist is a reliable body site for personal dosimetry of ultraviolet radiation. Photodermatology, Photoimmunology and Photomedicine, 16(2), 57-61. doi:10.1034/j.1600-0781.2000.d01-4.xMunakata, N., Ono, M., & Watanabe, S. (1998). Monitoring of Solar-UV Exposure among Schoolchildren in Five Japanese Cities Using Spore Dosimeter and UV-coloring Labels. Japanese Journal of Cancer Research, 89(3), 235-245. doi:10.1111/j.1349-7006.1998.tb00554.xT. B. Fitzpatrick , M.Pathak, and J. A.Parrish, Protection of human skin against the effects of the sunburn ultraviolet (290-320 nm), In Sunlight and Man: Normal and Abnormal Photobiologic Responses, ed. by M. A. Pathak, L. C. Harber, M. Seiji and A. Kukita, University of Tokyo Press, Tokyo, 1974, p. 751Furusawa, Y., Quintern, L. E., Holtschmidt, H., Koepke, P., & Saito, M. (1998). Determination of erythema-effective solar radiation in Japan and Germany with a spore monolayer film optimized for the detection of UVB and UVA - results of a field campaign. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 50(5), 597-603. doi:10.1007/s002530051341World Health Organization, Global Solar UV Index: A Practical guide, WHO, Geneva, Switzerland, 2002Herlihy, E., Gies, P. H., Roy, C. R., & Jones, M. (1994). PERSONAL DOSIMETRY OF SOLAR UV RADIATION FOR DIFFERENT OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 60(3), 288-294. doi:10.1111/j.1751-1097.1994.tb05106.xHOLMAN, C. D. J., GIBSON, I. M., STEPHENSON, M., & ARMSTRONG, B. K. (1983). Ultraviolet irradiation of human body sites in relation to occupation and outdoor activity: field studies using personal UVR dosimeters. Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, 8(3), 269-277. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2230.1983.tb01779.