IP Leaders Gather in Boston May 19-21 for LES (USA & Canada) Spring Meeting Focused on Deals & Commercializing Early Stage Technologies

April 22, 2010 10:10 AM US Eastern Timezone

Keynote Panel will feature IP Brass from Vanu, Inc., Sparta Group, A123 Systems, Sycamore Networks, Tejas, Third Rock Ventures and Aisling Capital

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hundreds of intellectual property (IP) business leaders will attend the Licensing Executives Society (USA & Canada) Spring Meeting May 19-21 in Boston. Themed, IP for Entrepreneurs and Universities, the meeting is uniquely designed for entrepreneurs, start-ups, investors, universities, labs and others who wish to learn about successful commercialization of early stage technologies. http://www.lesusacanada.org/MainNav/Events/Meetings/2010spring.aspx

“The Right Stuff: Putting Their Money Where Their Mouth Is”

“We’ve tailored our meeting content to enhance value and provide take-aways that will be immediately beneficial to attendees’ everyday work,” said LES (USA & Canada) Program Chair Walter Copan. “This is the year’s premier IP event for entrepreneurs, universities and other businesses focused on moving early stage technologies to market.”

Expected to attend are IP leaders from BP America Inc., Merck & Co., Inc., Bose, Brigham Young University, Cornell University, Stanford University, Duke University, Georgetown University, GlaxoSmithKline, Honeywell, Harvard University, Johnson & Johnson, Kauffman Foundation, Lockheed Martin, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Mayo Clinic, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceuticals Inc., Rutgers, Syngenta Biotechnology, Scripps Research Institute, U.S. Department of Defense and others.

The meeting will kick off with a powerhouse Keynote Panel titled, “Top Guns: Views from the Cockpit” featuring panelists Vanu Bose, CEO, Vanu, Inc.; Gururaj “Desh” Deshpande, Chairman of Sparta Group LLC, A123 Systems, Sycamore Networks and Tejas; Mark Levin, Co-Founder and Partner, Third Rock Ventures; and, Dennis Purcell, Senior Managing Partner, Aisling Capital. These IP thought leaders will discuss factors impacting new technology development, entrepreneurial businesses and early stage investors, as well as key aspects of innovation and game-changing business strategies.

LES will also host three plenary panels featuring an impressive line-up of speakers:

The Entrepreneurs Panel: “Voyages of the Enterprise – To Boldly Go…” will feature speakers including Bob Langer, Professor, Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, MIT, who will discuss best practices and lessons learned by serial entrepreneurs. They will also cover strategies and tactics to build your company, shape strategic alliances, valuation of the technologies and business and tips for structuring deals and attracting the right investors.
The Enforcement Panel: “War & Peace: Strategists’ Perspectives on the Art of War and Making Peace” includes panelists Keith Bergelt of Open Invention Network and Lita Nelsen of MIT, who will offer offensive and defensive strategies in addition to discussing issues and new approaches to consider in today’s changing IP landscape. Attendees will also learn ways to deal with patent assertions, Non-Practicing Entities and managing potential or real litigation.
The Venture Capital Panel: “The Right Stuff: Putting Their Money Where Their Mouth Is” includes panelists Bill Maris of Google Ventures, Noubar Afeyan of Flagship Ventures and Juan Enriquez of Excel Ventures discussing what early stage investors look for in technology-based businesses and what university spin-outs and early stage companies can do to attract the right investors.

For veteran IP professionals, LES will convene small, facilitated roundtable discussions to explore three “Hot Topic” themes. Participants will share ideas, experiences, real-world strategies and applications. A summary of these discussions will be shared exclusively with LES members and attendees. Topics include:

Game-Changing IP Strategy and Organizational Alignment that Lead to the Right Deal Pipeline
Best Practices in Deal Structure and Valuation in IP Acquisitions, Early Stage Technology Out-Licensing, IP Sales, Licensing Business Models and Joint Development Deals
Business defense and Offense Strategies to Deal with Patent Assertions, Non-Practicing Entities, and Potential or Real Litigation (Settlement Deals)

“We’ve found that this innovative format facilitates powerful exchanges of information and discussions where attendees learn from one another as well as from our expert panelists,” said LES (USA & Canada) Meeting Chair Caroline Rockafellow.

Running concurrently with the roundtables will be a series of breakout “Hot Topic” workshops that will drill down to explore more IP industry-specific themes, trends and issues. For more details on the meeting content and a full listing of speakers visit: http://www.lesusacanada.org/MainNav/Events/Meetings/2010spring.aspx

Other Meeting Highlights

Beyond compelling meeting content, LES will offer attendees unique networking opportunities, online access to the attendance lists, session presentations and handouts. There will also be a Tech Fair showcasing new and innovative products and services.

On Tuesday, May 18, attendees are invited to attend the Finals of the LES Foundation’s 2010 International Graduate Student Business Plan Competition. Five teams of the world’s most innovative graduate students will present their early stage technologies and services to a world-class panel of judges in hopes of taking home the $10,000 grand prize and in-kind prizes. These teams will also be eligible to win the prestigious $5,000 LES International Global Award. Competition winners will be announced at an Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, May 19^th. www.lesfoundation.org

Register before April 30^th to receive a $200.00 Early Bird discount. http://www.lesusacanada.org/sp10

MEDIA CONTACT: For more information, registration or interviews, contact Lydia Steck, TheCommunicator@comcast.net or (703) 836-3106.

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