Intellectual Property (IP) Commercialisation at Curtin

Please be advised that Round 1 of the Curtin New Inventor Competition is now closed.

The winning entry will be announced by the end of June 2008 and will be presented with a prize of $10,000. There will be special commendation awards granted at the discretion of the judges. Prize money can be used on any item of expenditure that further supports the research underpinning the submission. For more information, please contact Marilyn Crosthwaite on 9266 1778.

The Office of IP Commercialisation recently hosted a seminar for researchers, with presentations from a number of speakers with extensive commercialisation experience. Those presentations can be found below, and contain useful information on a variety of commercialisation issues.

• Commercialisation Fundamentals provides a good introduction to commercialisation, including what it is, and why you might want to do it.
• Commercialisation Process explains how commercialisation works at Curtin.
• Scanalyse tells the story of a Curtin commercialisation project that has become a company making sales in the international market.
• Glycan provides a Venture Capitalist‘s view of a Curtin commercialisation project.

The primary objective of the Office of IP Commercialisation is to ensure that Curtin secures attractive returns in the long term from the commercialisation of its valuable research outcomes and other intellectual property. Typical examples of intellectual property (IP) include inventions, computer programs, literary/artistic works and trade marks. Intellectual property has value and can be traded if appropriate steps are taken to protect it.

The Office of IP Commercialisation provides:

• Advice on IP issues and rights.
• Guidance in obtaining protection and liaison with Patent Attorneys.
• Assistance with the commercialisation decision-making process.
• Assistance with business plans at various stages of the venture.
• Assistance in finding industrial partners.
• Assistance in developing commercialisation strategies.

IP Policy

Curtin has a comprehensive policy on all aspects of IP ownership, commercialisation and protection. It clarifies the treatment of IP developed by staff and students in various circumstances, the importance of maintaining confidentiality and the ways in which commercialisation returns are shared with the inventors. All staff are bound by the Ownership of Intellectual Property Policy and are encouraged to familiarise themselves with it. An important aspect of the policy is the need to disclose technologies and research outcomes with commercial potential.

For more information regarding the activities of the Office of IP Commercialisation, please choose from the menu on the left.