Method of protecting against a change in value of intellectual property, and product providing such protection

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a method of providing protection against an unexpected change in value of an intellectual property asset, which includes: (a). obtaining a description of at least one intellectual property asset of a first party, (b). determining a value of the at least one intellectual property asset, (c). determining a cost of providing compensation for an unexpected change in value of the at least one intellectual property asset, and (d). offering to provide compensation for at least a portion of any unexpected change in value of the at least one intellectual property asset to a person with an interest in the first party. A corresponding data processing system, insurance proposal form and computer-generated insurance policy form also are disclosed. The method, system and forms of the invention can be used, for example, as part of a “due diligence” analysis in the context of the purchase and/or sale of intellectual property assets.

1 . A method of managing assets, comprising: 
 identifying one or more key intellectual property assets to be transferred,    computing a validity probability for each key intellectual property asset,    computing a licensing value for the key intellectual property assets, and    computer-generating an insurance proposal for protecting against a change in value of the key intellectual property assets during a predetermined post-transfer time period.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the key intellectual property assets include at least one of patents, trademarks and copyrights.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the key intellectual property assets include one or more patents.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the validity probability is based on a study of prior art patents.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the validity probability is based on a study of patent ownership.  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the validity probability is based on a study of government regulations.  
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the validity probability is based upon a likelihood of a key intellectual property asset being involved in a patent interference.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the validity probability is based upon a predicted outcome of a patent interference.  
     
     
         9 . A method of providing a bank loan of a predetermined amount to a corporate entity, comprising: 
 identifying key intellectual property assets owned by the corporate entity,    computing a validity probability for the key intellectual property assets,    computing a value for the key intellectual property assets based in part upon the validity probability,    obtaining an offer for an insurance policy from a third party covering at least a portion of the value of the key intellectual property assets, and    providing the corporate entity with the bank loan subject to an agreement by the corporate entity to accept the offer for the insurance policy and to guarantee the loan with the insurance policy.    
     
     
         10 . A computer-generated insurance policy form offering to insure at least a portion of the value of at least one intellectual property asset exclusive of legal fees, the insurance policy form being generated in connection with a proposed transfer of ownership of said at least one intellectual property asset.