Have you ever thought about University Technology Transfer Offices as agents? Are TTOs agents, agencies, but we’ve never thought about it like this before? Will you be called a TT Agency one day?
In Technology Transfer, the University appoints the TTO as the Researcher’s agent; this is usually part of the university’s rules. The Researcher will choose whether or not to engage in TT activities in the first instance. The TTO acts as the Researcher’s agent, taking on responsibility for providing a range of services, hopefully always in close collaboration with the Researcher. This usually out works well, but not always.
It is generally a good arrangement for the Researchers. The TTO does large amounts of work organising patenting, securing Freedom To Transfer (FTT), researching the market, lining up meetings with potential licensees, investors etc. This can all cost a lot of money and the university provides the money for the TTO to do all these things. The TTO covers the costs on all the projects, and when successful the Researchers get a share of the income, potentially also enhancing their reputation, and generating impact.
In the area of academic consulting the transaction is relatively straightforward. The TTO helps find the work (sometimes) and then arranges the contracts, invoicing payments, does the admin. Usually the Researcher is free to choose to use the TTO to do this for them, and the TTO charges a percentage of the consulting income (eg 10%) or no fee at all. This is where the relationship is closest to Literary Agents for their authors, and Talent Agents for their actors and film stars.
In the areas of patenting, licensing, spin-outs, the TTO assumes the role of agent and does lots of things, patenting, marketing, deal-making, business planning, shareholders agreements, invoicing, payments etc. The agency fee structure is more complicated.
Can the Researchers change their Agent?
Yes, to an extent. Authors and Actors can change their Agent whenever they want; some stay with the same Agent their whole career, others move around.
For academic consulting, the university’s service is often entirely voluntary, recognising the researchers are selling their expertise rather than the university’s intellectual property rights.
For patenting, licensing, spin-outs, there is usually an expectation (often a requirement in the rules) that researchers will start by working with the university’s TTO and unless the relationship breaks on, will continue.
Sometimes the relationship does break down, and arrangements are made for the researchers to take over the process themselves, with transfers of IP, and sometimes obligations to pay back money one day.
It may be the working relationship can be fixed by appointing a different person in the TTO as the Researcher’s contact point, or it may be more serious than that.
The Researcher then takes back their agency, choosing to go it alone. They may continue themselves, or appoint a new agent in the private sector. These can be hard to find - who would actually do this job, pay the upfront costs etc, take a risk on their technology - although in many ways early-stage financial investors act in this role.
From the Agent’s perspective (the TTO), can they fire their Client (the Researcher)? Well, yes, in a way, in that the TTO can say: we are deciding not to continue with this project, and you can have back your agency if you wish.
How much are the Agency Fees?
For academic consulting, as mentioned above the fees are usually from zero to 10%.
For technology licensing, it is a little more complicated: the TTO will recover its external costs from income received (this is usually and only patent costs); the income net of external costs is then distributed amongst the researchers involved, the university department and the university centrally; sometimes the TTO itself receives a share, which can be seen as part of the university central share. Researchers typically receive around a third of the net income, with many variations in practice.
For spin-outs there aren’t any fees really; the Researchers have a shareholding, the University has a shareholding, and that is it.
In the old days, some countries had national Technology Transfer Agencies, in the sense that governments have many, many Agencies, for this that and the other on behalf of the people. In the UK, BTG was the national technology transfer agency for universities from 1949 to 1985; they charged a 50% fee.
Agency
These points on fees show where the concept of Agency in TT gets interesting. Is it that the TTO is retaining something that may otherwise belong to the Researcher? No, not at all. But does the Researcher think that the TTO is acting on its behalf in various ways? Yes, absolutely.
Authors and actors are usually independent, self-employed, whereas Researchers are usually employed by the University. This is a fundamental issue on matters of agency. As employees go, however, Researchers are probably some of the most independent thinking you’ll find; some view themselves more independent than employed.
Agency, and sense of agency, are well established concepts in sociology, counselling, mediation and mindfulness. ‘Do you have agency?’ and ‘Have you lost, or transferred, your agency?’ are terms discussed much more these days than they were twenty years ago.
Thinking about TTOs as agents, and the idea of the agent-client relationship in university technology transfer, is rather interesting.
TTO or TTA ...? Maybe you don’t think it is about agency at all.
In Technology Transfer, the University appoints the TTO as the Researcher’s agent; this is usually part of the university’s rules. The Researcher will choose whether or not to engage in TT activities in the first instance. The TTO acts as the Researcher’s agent, taking on responsibility for providing a range of services, hopefully always in close collaboration with the Researcher. This usually out works well, but not always.
It is generally a good arrangement for the Researchers. The TTO does large amounts of work organising patenting, securing Freedom To Transfer (FTT), researching the market, lining up meetings with potential licensees, investors etc. This can all cost a lot of money and the university provides the money for the TTO to do all these things. The TTO covers the costs on all the projects, and when successful the Researchers get a share of the income, potentially also enhancing their reputation, and generating impact.
In the area of academic consulting the transaction is relatively straightforward. The TTO helps find the work (sometimes) and then arranges the contracts, invoicing payments, does the admin. Usually the Researcher is free to choose to use the TTO to do this for them, and the TTO charges a percentage of the consulting income (eg 10%) or no fee at all. This is where the relationship is closest to Literary Agents for their authors, and Talent Agents for their actors and film stars.
In the areas of patenting, licensing, spin-outs, the TTO assumes the role of agent and does lots of things, patenting, marketing, deal-making, business planning, shareholders agreements, invoicing, payments etc. The agency fee structure is more complicated.
Can the Researchers change their Agent?
Yes, to an extent. Authors and Actors can change their Agent whenever they want; some stay with the same Agent their whole career, others move around.
For academic consulting, the university’s service is often entirely voluntary, recognising the researchers are selling their expertise rather than the university’s intellectual property rights.
For patenting, licensing, spin-outs, there is usually an expectation (often a requirement in the rules) that researchers will start by working with the university’s TTO and unless the relationship breaks on, will continue.
Sometimes the relationship does break down, and arrangements are made for the researchers to take over the process themselves, with transfers of IP, and sometimes obligations to pay back money one day.
It may be the working relationship can be fixed by appointing a different person in the TTO as the Researcher’s contact point, or it may be more serious than that.
The Researcher then takes back their agency, choosing to go it alone. They may continue themselves, or appoint a new agent in the private sector. These can be hard to find - who would actually do this job, pay the upfront costs etc, take a risk on their technology - although in many ways early-stage financial investors act in this role.
From the Agent’s perspective (the TTO), can they fire their Client (the Researcher)? Well, yes, in a way, in that the TTO can say: we are deciding not to continue with this project, and you can have back your agency if you wish.
How much are the Agency Fees?
For academic consulting, as mentioned above the fees are usually from zero to 10%.
For technology licensing, it is a little more complicated: the TTO will recover its external costs from income received (this is usually and only patent costs); the income net of external costs is then distributed amongst the researchers involved, the university department and the university centrally; sometimes the TTO itself receives a share, which can be seen as part of the university central share. Researchers typically receive around a third of the net income, with many variations in practice.
For spin-outs there aren’t any fees really; the Researchers have a shareholding, the University has a shareholding, and that is it.
In the old days, some countries had national Technology Transfer Agencies, in the sense that governments have many, many Agencies, for this that and the other on behalf of the people. In the UK, BTG was the national technology transfer agency for universities from 1949 to 1985; they charged a 50% fee.
Agency
These points on fees show where the concept of Agency in TT gets interesting. Is it that the TTO is retaining something that may otherwise belong to the Researcher? No, not at all. But does the Researcher think that the TTO is acting on its behalf in various ways? Yes, absolutely.
Authors and actors are usually independent, self-employed, whereas Researchers are usually employed by the University. This is a fundamental issue on matters of agency. As employees go, however, Researchers are probably some of the most independent thinking you’ll find; some view themselves more independent than employed.
Agency, and sense of agency, are well established concepts in sociology, counselling, mediation and mindfulness. ‘Do you have agency?’ and ‘Have you lost, or transferred, your agency?’ are terms discussed much more these days than they were twenty years ago.
Thinking about TTOs as agents, and the idea of the agent-client relationship in university technology transfer, is rather interesting.
TTO or TTA ...? Maybe you don’t think it is about agency at all.