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Intellectual Property Rights and Research in the Digital AgeCRASSH

2 February 2011

Dr Richard Jennings, Deputy Director Cambridge Enterprise Limited, University of Cambridge

Extracts from University’s Mission Statement

•

The mission of the University of Cambridge is to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence.

• from its core values

• the contribution which the University can make to society through the pursuit, dissemination, and application of knowledge

Cambridge Enterprise

“Cambridge Enterprise exists to help University of Cambridge inventors, innovators and entrepreneurs make their ideas and

concepts more commercially successful for the benefit of society, the UK economy, the inventors and the University”

Processes for the flow of knowledge into society

• Universities create, store and disseminate knowledge

• Natural flow of people and knowledge as a result of teaching and research

• ad hoc activities of individuals through consultancy and spin-off companies

• Sponsorship of individual research projects

• Increasingly orchestrated collaborations - often interdisciplinary, international and many partners

• Management, protection and exploitation of intellectual property

University of Cambridge and Intellectual PropertyUniversity Policy – updated December 2005

• Subject to any funding agreements with research sponsors:

• Researcher decides if they wish to commercialise their work

• If the Researcher decides to commercialise their work this must be disclosed to the University which has the right to apply for registerable intellectual property rights (e.g. patents)

• Students own IP they create on their own only and when they are the sole inventor and there is no obligation to a sponsor

• Provides an option for inventors to commercialise IP independently of the University, subject to funding terms

• Cambridge Enterprise Limited collaborates with Researchers to license technology to new and existing companies, and helps the Researchers to set up businesses and raise funding

Non-registerable intellectual property rights,

• That arise from the employment activities of University staff

• That exist without the need for any formal application, belong to the University staff member who creates the results subject to any third party rights to which he or she may have previously agreed.

• Applies in particular to copyright and moral rights in literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works;

• Applies to copyright in software, notwithstanding that there may also be patentable results embodied in the software;

• Applies to copyright arising from authorship of a database; performers’ rights; unregistered design rights; and rights over information

However ...

• The University shall own copyright, database rights, and other unregistered rights arising from the activities of University staff in the course of their employment by the University in

• (a) subject matter created for the administrative or managerial purposes of the University, including advice to students other than teaching materials;

• (b) subject matter such as examination papers and library catalogues;

• (c) any other subject matter commissioned by the University, such as special reports on its policy or management.

• (For the purposes of this regulation, works commissioned by Cambridge University Press in the course of its business shall not be regarded as such commissioned subject matter) .

Release of University owned copyright materials

• Material or other subject matter that is developed in the University of which the copyright is owned by the University, may be released under Open Source or similar arrangements on the authority of the Head of Department in which the material is created.

• The Head of Department may delegate such authority within a Department without restriction.

• When material is derived from material acquired under Open Source, no such approval is needed.

Opt In / Opt Out

Opt In Opt Out

If decision is made not to proceed through CE

Revenue sharing using Cambridge Enterprise

Net income Inventor(s) Department(s) University

First £100,000 90% 5% 5%

Next £100,000 60% 20% 20%

Over £200,000 34% 33% 33%

Revenue sharing not using Cambridge Enterprise

Net income Inventor(s) Department(s) University

First £50,000 100%

Over £50,000 85% 7.5% 7.5%

Conclusion

• Working with external bodies to disseminate knowledge commercially can create conflicts of interest and threats to the University’s charitable status

• The safe option is to do nothing

• The more interesting and exciting option is to accept that these issues exist and to manage them effectively and constructively

• Mutual benefits are real and the political drivers to demonstrate societal and economic benefit (“impact”) are greater than ever.

• “Impact” = 20% of QR in REF ( RAE successor)

Contact Us

Cambridge Enterprise Limited

University of Cambridge

Hauser Forum

3 Charles Babbage Road

Cambridge

CB3 0GT

UK

Tel: +44 (0)1223 760339

Fax: +44 (0)1223 763753

Email: enquiries@enterprise.cam.ac.uk

www.enterprise.cam.ac.uk