Business from technology

Commercialisation of technology

Inventions and software are VTT's IPR-property (Intellectual Property Rights), protected by patents. VTTers turn in some 200 notifications of inventions each year, and approximately one-third of these lead to a patent application. In the beginning of 2008, VTT owns about 280 inventions protected by patents. VTT aims to establish several spin off companies yearly. The number of VTT Spin-offs has tripled in the past three years.

When a company mandates VTT to increase its competitive advantage, it is of primary importance for VTT that this advantage can be secured by using an appropriate Intellectual Property (IP) protection. By taking part in a co-financed project a company ensures an opportunity to monitor the development of new technologies from a special viewpoint. By given conditions, the company gets, or can reclaim, the right to exploit the results of a co-financed project.

VTT’s Ventures is in charge of the protection of VTT’s technology property and commercialization activities. The objective is to strengthen the use of the IPR property and improve the following activities:

• Technology transfer through licensing
  
• Birth of VTT-based spin-off companies
  
• Commercialization of VTT-based software
  
• Use of technology as a support for own R&D
  
• Encouraging staff members into activities related to inventions and innovations
  
• Evaluation and development of commercial VTT-based ideas and invention
  

Technology transfer and commercialization activities are foremost a team game. The inventors who created the innovation are naturally involved in the commercialization project as deep technology experts – and also possibly as technology entrepreneurs. Our client base includes Finnish and global companies that actively buy industrial rights to improve their own production. VTT also has an extensive international partner network reaching towards patent experts, technology transfer organisations and various sources of financing.