USC and other leading universities launch joint technology licensing program

On February 10, 2021, USC News reported, USC has joined a coalition of leading research universities that aims to boost the transfer of researchers’ patented technologies and inventions to companies.

All told, 15 universities are members of the limited liability corporation University Technology Licensing Program (UTLP): USC, Brown, Caltech, Columbia, Cornell, Harvard, Illinois, Michigan, Northwestern, Penn, Princeton, SUNY Binghamton, UC Berkeley, UCLA, and Yale.

UTLP will provide a new marketplace that bundles licensable technologies from multiple institutions so that it is easier for companies to acquire them to expand their portfolio of products.

“A technology transfer that connects USC and other leading research universities to the industry are critical to solving some of societies biggest challenges, growing the economy and adding jobs, and securing U.S. technological advantage in competitive global markets,” said Jennifer Dyer, executive director for the USC Stevens Center for Innovation.

The Stevens Center manages intellectual property matters, including patent applications and licenses, for scientists and engineers across USC. Previous university developments in the area of the physical sciences have already generated important patented inventions that have improved lives and enabled new products. UTLP paves the way for continued innovation in the industrial arena.

Dyer said the UTLP and the universities were pleased to have received a favorable business review letter from the U.S. Department of Justice for their new endeavor.

“UTLP is a creative solution to meet a long-felt need for universities and private sector actors,” said David Kappos, a former undersecretary of commerce for intellectual property and director of the Patent and Trademark Office. “It will make the licensing of technologies much easier and more convenient, to the benefit of all participants.”

Multiple technology areas are included in the coalition, including connectivity, signal processing, location tracking, cameras and imaging, as well as self-driving vehicles. USC is focused on autonomous vehicles and big data applications for now.

In the future, the coalition may develop additional patent pools related to electronic fabrication, applied electronics, batteries, photovoltaics, robotics and other areas of interest to industry.

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