Private equity firm Vector Capital has acquired IPVALUE Management from existing venture investors and other shareholders.
Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
IPVALUE, founded in 2001, is a provider of intellectual property (IP) transactional and advisory services for the world’s premier technology companies, top R&D labs, and other developers and owners of marquee intellectual property.
IPVALUE partners with these IP owners to generate revenue from under-monetised patents via licensing, as well as via patent sales or divestiture transactions when appropriate.
Rob Amen, a managing director at Vector Capital who will join IPVALUE’s board of directors, says: “For over a decade, IPVALUE has assisted the world's most innovative companies in realising the value of their intellectual property. Technology pioneers such as Xerox, PARC, BT and NXP have all placed their trust in IPVALUE to represent their interests in a commercial and sensible manner. In a rapidly evolving and sometimes chaotic IP world, the team at IPVALUE has proven itself to be the most successful and well-regarded advisory firm in helping partners realise a return on innovation. We are proud to support IPVALUE in the next phase of its growth.”
IPVALUE pursues licensing agreements through sound, data-driven discussions. A significant majority of negotiations initiated by IPVALUE with potential licensees result in mutually-agreed-upon licensing terms without the need for litigation. IPVALUE's multi-disciplinary professional staff includes attorneys, technologists, business specialists, and negotiators who bring experience from technology companies such as AT&T, Agere, IBM, Lucent, NEC, Silicon Graphics and Texas Instruments. To date, the IPVALUE team has closed over 150 IP monetisation transactions, generating over USD1.25 billion in gross revenue for its partners.
IPVALUE’s CEO Murali Dharan says: “Vector is the ideal partner to take IPVALUE to the next phase of growth. They understand the intellectual property marketplace, they have conviction about the growth opportunity in front of us, and they recognise and appreciate the professionalism and integrity with which IPVALUE serves blue-chip customers in this market. With Vector’s financial backing and support, we will look to expand our market presence and bring our transparent approach to IP commercialisation to many more global leaders in innovation.”
