In a recent article from the MIT Sloan School of Management titled "2 strong predictors of startup success" (*) and based on research done on U.S. startups, it is clear that startups that protect their intangible assets from year one have better growth and a more facilitated dialogue with venture capitalists; this trend is reinforced for companies that have also applied for trademark protection within a year of founding. The study highlights that startups that own a patent are "87 times more likely to grow than companies that don't acquire a patent."
Therefore, if intellectual property titles are an important factor for business growth and development, they are decisively so for startups and university spin-offs, which rely primarily (if not solely) on intangible assets.
Startups have grown vigorously, surpassing a total of 10,000 in Italy, but according to data compiled by the Innov-E 2019 Observatory of the Institute for Competitiveness (I-Com), only 17% of startups had a registered patent and/or registered software.
Startups, small companies characterized by a strong innovative component, whose main value is their ability to generate inventions in dynamic and constantly evolving sectors, in Italy have not yet internalized the strategic importance of protecting and enhancing innovation and creativity through intellectual property rights, which represent the key element to ensure their growth.
However, like other intellectual property rights, patents should not be considered as a simple defensive tool to prevent larger and better structured competitors from illegally taking advantage of an innovative technology; especially for startups, they should also be considered as a lever to increase their ability to attract capital and potential investors thanks to the availability of protected intangible innovative capital. An adequate protection of one's own inventive and creative capacity through appropriate intellectual property tools makes startups more attractive to anyone interested in investing in them.
These are the reasons that led Metroconsult, a company specializing in consulting services on intellectual property, to support the 2020 edition of Start Cup Piemonte Valle d'Aosta; a small contribution to participate concretely in the development of innovation and the spread of a culture of protection and enhancement of intellectual property in startups, through a prize that supports the deposit of an innovative idea by the startup.
In particular, Metroconsult is committed to offering Start Cup 2020 prize-winning companies consulting services in intellectual property, assisting them in identifying the most appropriate form of protection to safeguard the result of their creativity, through services ranging from prior art searches, to the development of suitable protection strategies, to the filing of the application for registration with the relative granting of the title in Italy and abroad, up to the identification and repression of any counterfeit actions.
Strengthened by its industrial background (it was born as a "spin-off" of Indesit in the 80s), Metroconsult is the ideal partner to help startups grow, protecting and enhancing their rich intangible assets, without having to face too onerous investments.
For more information: www.metroconsult.it
(*) https://mitsloan.mit.edu/ideas-made-to-matter/2-strong-predictors-startup-success - Meredith Somers – MIT Management Sloan School - August 5, 2019
Felice Fulvio Faraci, President & CEO of Metroconsult
***
In order to compete for the special Metroconsult award, you must submit your project by 18:00 on July 23rd with your Business Plan, Executive Summary and intellectual property document.
