How can you create an adaptable licensing strategy for changing markets?

2 Choose the right licensing model

Depending on your licensing goals, you can opt for different licensing models that offer varying degrees of control, risk, and reward. For example, you can choose between exclusive, non-exclusive, or co-exclusive licenses, depending on how many licensees you want to grant access to your IP. You can also choose between fixed-fee, royalty-based, or hybrid licenses, depending on how you want to share the revenue from your IP. Additionally, you can choose between standard or customized licenses, depending on how flexible you want to be with the terms and conditions of your license.

3 Monitor the market dynamics

One of the challenges of licensing is that the market conditions and customer preferences can change rapidly, affecting the value and demand of your IP. Therefore, you need to monitor the market dynamics and adjust your licensing strategy accordingly. For example, you may need to renegotiate your license terms, modify your royalty rates, expand or limit your license scope, or terminate your license agreement, depending on the market trends and opportunities. You should also keep an eye on the competitive landscape and the emerging technologies that may affect your IP position and differentiation.

4 Protect your IP rights

Another challenge of licensing is that you expose your IP to potential misuse, infringement, or imitation by your licensees or third parties. Therefore, you need to protect your IP rights and enforce them effectively. For example, you should register your IP with the relevant authorities, use confidentiality agreements and non-disclosure agreements, conduct due diligence on your licensees, include clauses on quality control, audit rights, and dispute resolution in your license agreement, and monitor the compliance and performance of your licensees.

5 Seek feedback and collaboration

Finally, one of the benefits of licensing is that you can learn from your licensees and collaborate with them to improve your IP and innovation outcomes. Therefore, you should seek feedback and collaboration from your licensees and use them as a source of market intelligence, customer insights, product development, and innovation networks. You should also foster a relationship of trust and mutual benefit with your licensees, and leverage their strengths and capabilities to enhance your competitive advantage and innovation potential.