Study Shows 75% Of Organizations Have No Licensing Strategy: Why Is This Important?
Licensing essentially refers to an agreement that licensees must comply with to use specific products. Various items can be licensed, from trademarks and patents to branding. The guidelines are usually outlined in the license agreement that informs what can and cannot be done with it. And despite the advantages it offers licensors, many businesses still lack a licensing strategy. With that said, we’ll look into why licensing strategies are essential to companies.
It presents ways to earn passive income
Owners of intellectual properties can present themselves with the opportunity to generate a flow of passive income. It does not require any additional work to create this revenue stream either. For example, if you are running a software firm, then you can use a software license management solution and implement a subscription-based strategy that will enable you to earn from your clients through their continued use of your products.
It can create business opportunities
One of the reasons licensing strategies are advantageous is that they keep the risks of all parties involved at a minimum. From the standpoint of the licensees, the risks in the development of products, testing of markets, distribution, and manufacturing are low, making it an attractive prospect for them. On the other hand, the service and selling of existing offerings pose little to no risk since they aren’t required to invest more time or financial resources into it to make a profit.
It makes access to foreign markets easier
With the right licensing arrangement, licensors can get their offerings into markets, including foreign ones, since licensing enables intellectual properties to be able to jump over border requirements, giving brands and companies a chance to enter foreign markets. This means that those tariff barriers of entry can be potentially avoided since a domestic organization will be using intellectual property.
It protects keeps intellectual properties protected
Beyond the opportunities it gives for the creation of more streams of revenue for a business, it also protects its intellectual properties. This ensures that only the licensors and licensees reap the benefits of the IP. There will always be businesses looking to duplicate the success of others and sell them as their own, which can impact the owners of the intellectual property by taking business away from them. Protecting your intellectual property is also vital for the loss of profit or revenue stream because it helps give the brand a unique value proposition, which is crucial to drawing in customers.
However, only the brand or company responsible for the product or service can profit from its sale through licensing, which is why licensing is vital.
Conclusion
Many take licensing for granted, only to find out later that they’ve missed out on opportunities to profit from their intellectual properties and grow their businesses. So don’t fall into the same trap, and ensure your IPs are appropriately licensed. This way, you’ll be able to take advantage of its benefits.
