Competency Standards and Ethical Regulations for U.S. Intellectual Property Brokers and Other Middlemen
In a recen t article, I presented a taxonomy consisting of nineteen IP business models in the United States intellectual property marketplace. Although, admittedly, the taxonomy presented was not perfect, it adequately described what I observed as the continuing rise of intermediary business models in the marketplace. In that taxonomy, I included “IP middlemen” such as: Licensing Agents, IP Brokers, IP-Based M&A Advisors, IP Auction Houses, On-Line IP/Technology Exchanges, and University Technology Transfer Intermediaries. Individual inventors and corporate IP owners are used to dealing with accountants, lawyers and investment advisors – all professionals who are governed by state and/or federal professional regulations, and/or national association guidelines. Well, the question I pose is: What professional regulations govern the qualifications and conduct of all these IP middlemen ? The short answer to the above question is “none!” Aft...