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Understanding Patent Value

Discover the true worth of a company’s most valuable asset.

How to calculate what patents contribute to enterprise value

It is easy to assert that patents are valuable, and it is challenging to quantify their value. The unique and unusual characteristics of patents explain this.

Many patent valuation methodologies have been developed to deal with this problem. Among the most common are the cost, income and market approaches.

But consider if there was a valuation methodology for calculating the contribution that an entire portfolio makes to the overall value of the company.

Nigel Swycher, LexisNexis Cipher CEO and Steve Harris, LexisNexis Cipher CTO – have coined the description in situ valuation for this approach to emphasize that the valuation is only relevant to the current owner and that it is not dependent on a specific licensing, litigation or other corporate event.

The Contribution of Patents to Enterprise Value

In this report, the authors consider:

  • The importance of patents
  • Existing approaches to patent valuation
  • ‘In situ’ valuation of patents
  • An opportunity to communicate patent value

Return on Investment (ROI)

$40 billion is spent on patents yearly, but how do you determine the value those assets bring to your organization?

The data, the tools and the model for calculating ROI are ready to be used in this report. 

Pulling Back the Curtain: Calculating Return on Investment of Patent Portfolios – was co-authored with the industry professionals at Meta.

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