Some months ago, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) announced the Patents 4 Partnerships (“P4P”) platform, a pilot program that aims to connect companies who wish to acquire or license patent assets (including issued patents and pending patent applications) with the owners of those assets. The P4P program consists of a searchable database of patent assets that are voluntarily submitted by their owners, with that database provided to connect potential buyers and licensees with potential sellers and licensors. Once connected, it is up to the parties to negotiate the terms of a purchase or license. As such, P4P effectively acts as a repository for which the USPTO assumes no further responsibility or participation beyond information exchange.
Sellers and licensors include a variety of companies, as well as the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer, Association of University Technology Managers, numerous universities, and a number of federal agencies including:
• The National Institutes of Health;
• The Department of Energy;
• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration;
• The Food and Drug Administration;
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;
• The Department of Defense; and
• The Department of Veterans Affairs.
Excerpted from Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal. To read the full article, click on the PDF linked below:
Publication
Jason Novak, Daniel Kennedy in IP & Technology Law Journal: 'Initial Observations Regarding the USPTO's Patents 4 Partnerships Pilot Program'
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