Commercial exploitation of an invention can be accomplished in many different ways.
The two most usual are licensing and the starting of new companies. Licensing entails
transferring the rights of the invention to an entrepreneur, who is responsible for continued
development and commercial introduction. Generally, when choosing the form of
licensing, the inventor has strong patent protection as a basis for negotiations with the
entrepreneur. Without strong patent protection, the licensing negotiations are difficult, as
it generally is the patent that, at this time, is the only meaningful feature in the negotiation.
In some cases, it can be advantageous to start a new company that conducts the
development work and is responsible for market launching. If the invention to be
exploited concerns completely new areas where few or no established companies are
active, then a start-up company for commercialization can be a quicker route to the market.
After successful product development and market launching, the company can be
sold. Upon starting a company, the patent issue is generally less important, while matters
concerning marketing and manufacturing are more important. After the invention has
been assessed from market, technical, and economic perspectives, it is time to decide on
the form of full-scale exploitation.