This is according to the survey of knowledge commercialization companies in Israel 2017 - reports on disclosures of inventions, patents, license agreements, revenues and the establishment of start-up companies of knowledge commercialization companies near the universities, colleges and hospitals
A company's income from the sale of intellectual property includes: the sale of patents, royalties, options, license fees, income from ownership of start-up companies (dividends, profits from the sale of start-up companies, etc.) and other income from intellectual property. These revenues in 2016 amounted to 1,364 million NIS. Most of the income from the sale of intellectual property was in the companies near the universities (97%). The revenues of the companies near the universities from the sale of intellectual property in 2016 decreased by 10% compared to 2015 (1,464 million NIS).
There was a 2% decrease in the total revenue of all knowledge commercialization companies (including revenue from research). In 2016, income from other activities (mainly from research) accounted for 35% of the total income.
In 2017, knowledge commercialization companies registered 660 patents (a sharp decrease compared to 2016) and were involved in the establishment of 39 start-up companies. This is according to a survey of knowledge commercialization companies in Israel 2017 - reports on disclosures of inventions, patents, license agreements, revenues and the establishment of start-up companies.
A survey of knowledge commercialization companies in Israel for 2017 included the knowledge commercialization companies whose activities are ancillary to the activities of research universities (eight companies for eight universities) and in addition companies near research institutes and academic colleges (five companies) and hospitals (six companies). This is the seventh survey conducted by the CBS on knowledge commercialization companies.
The survey was conducted with the initiative and support of the National R&D Council, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Space. The questionnaire dealt with these topics: expenses and personnel in the field of intellectual property management, intellectual property and its protection (patents, inventions, etc.), income from intellectual property and the startup companies of knowledge commercialization companies.
In the knowledge commercialization companies, an increase in the number of license agreements, in the number of start-up companies in which the knowledge commercialization companies were involved, and in the number of patent families is evident in 2017. On the other hand, there was a decrease in all the other indicators: in the number of new applications for patent registration, in the number of patents approved during 2017, in reports on discoveries, in the number of professional employees, in expenses, in total revenue and in revenue from the sale of intellectual property and royalties.
In 2017, the researchers of the various universities and research institutes submitted about 1,070 reports on disclosures for examination in knowledge commercialization companies, a decrease of 19% compared to the previous year. About 553 of the reports were in companies near the universities, a decrease of 9% compared to 2016. In 2017, knowledge commercialization companies submitted 604 original applications for registering patents, compared to 635 in 2016, a decrease of 5%.
In 2017, 660 applications for patents were approved compared to 813 applications approved in 2016, a decrease of 19%. In 2017, knowledge commercialization companies were involved in the establishment of 39 start-up companies, 69% of which were established by the companies near the universities. The revenues from the sale of intellectual property and royalties in 2016 amounted to 1,364 million NIS, compared to 1,507 million NIS in 2015, a decrease of 9.5%; In 2016, 97% of these revenues were from companies near the universities.
A standardized international comparison for 2015 shows that Israel ranks relatively high in intellectual property revenues as a percentage of total R&D expenditures in the country (compared to other countries in this comparison), while the United States ranks highest in intellectual property revenues and in the number of approved patents. Canada ranks high in the number of start-up companies. On the other hand, the United Kingdom is in a higher place than the other countries in the comparison in the other indices: disclosures for inventions, number of full-time positions of professional employees for the institution and number of license agreements.
The role of the knowledge commercialization companies is to recruit, market and develop the accumulated knowledge in the aforementioned institutions, turn a patent into a commercial product and help in the establishment of start-up companies. In these actions, the knowledge commercialization companies make a real contribution to the growth of the economy at the same time as increasing the income of the institutions they represent. The knowledge commercialization companies deal with intellectual property management. Intellectual property is a general name for rights associated with intangible resources that are the creation of the human intellect, such as patents, copyrights and trademarks. These property rights allow their holder to create a monopoly on the use of an item for a certain period and in certain countries.
• There are different types of intellectual property: inventions, computer programs, databases, teaching aids, other aids, industrial plans, trade mark or official marks, new plant varieties, etc. The commercialization process in these companies usually goes like this: in the first stage, the companies turn to the academic staff at a university, hospital or institute, in order to receive new ideas, innovations and inventions. After that, they examine whether the idea, invention or innovation is legally defensible and whether it has a commercial potential that justifies the registration of a patent. The companies decide with which of the ideas to continue the process and which of the ideas to postpone. Following the process, the companies submit applications for patent registration to the appropriate authorities in Israel and/or abroad and try to market the patent rights to companies in Israel and abroad. The companies sell exclusive or non-exclusive rights to use the patent, but usually do not sell ownership of the patent.
Reports of discoveries
In 2017, 1,070 invention disclosures were reported to knowledge commercialization companies, about 553 of which were in knowledge commercialization companies near the universities. Compared to 2016, there was a 19% decrease in the total number of reports on inventions in all institutions. In companies near universities there was a 9% decrease compared to 2016. There was a significant increase in reports of companies near hospitals.
The number of patent families increased in 2017 by 1% compared to 2016. The increase was in companies near hospitals (4%) and research institutes (11%). The patent families in the companies near the universities were 78% of the total.
License Agreements
The role of knowledge commercialization companies is to market and transfer the knowledge created in universities, hospitals and research institutes and colleges. The most accepted way to commercialize the knowledge is through license agreements.
The number of new license agreements with external companies was 267 in 2017, compared to 234 in 2016, an increase of 14%. Most of the agreements were signed with local companies: 76% in 2017, compared to 79% in 2016. Most of the agreements were signed with knowledge commercialization companies near the universities - 62% in 2017 and 65% in 2016.
