The missing link

Whether we’re referring to evolution or ecosystems or experiments, most in the science community have come to understand that things don’t simply happen: they result. Changes in climate cause adaptation in animals or the addition of a catalyst to an experimental system results in a faster reaction. Yet, when it comes to technology transfer, to actually commercializing the patented products in which we have invested years of research and millions of dollars, we are too often content to wait for an industry opportunity to present itself. We assume, despite myriad evidence to the contrary, that tech transfer happens, rather than results.

In a 2007 paper on “University Licensing,” Georgia Tech University’s Marie Thursby and Emory University’s Jerry Thursby concluded that the recent growth in licensing creates a misleading picture, ignoring vast variations in licensing success among universities, scientific fields and technologies. Many universities do not make money on technology transfer, the authors asserted, explaining that the bottom 25 percent of universities reporting to the Association of University Technology Managers bring in less than $360,000 per year in licensing, while spending as much as $213,000 on legal fees alone.

According to the National Science Board’s Science & Engineering Indicators, within the United States:

• Universities account for about 75 percent of basic research, but complete only a fractional percentage of development
• Industry is responsible for about 90 percent technology development
• Universities derive 63 percent of their research budgets from government and only 5 percent from industry
• Overall, industry funds 62 percent of research compared to government’s 30 percent

Universities expect that licensing deals and successful commercial products will simply happen if they conduct careful and useful research. However, the widening gulf between universities and industry, which has resulted from mutual misunderstanding more than federal patent laws, can only hamper the transfer of technology from university labs.

To achieve the result of successful tech transfer, universities need to address industry needs, set up professional points of contact to carefully market their technologies and be a partner, rather than an adversary, in industry research. Universities also must work to combat misunderstandings about their ability to develop technology for industry and get creative in guaranteeing reasonable license rates for those that sponsor research.

If universities and industry become catalysts for moving technology from the lab to the marketplace, both will benefit by combining the power of universities to conduct efficient cutting-edge research as part of their educational missions and the strength of industry to access consumers and introduce functional products.