Analysis of the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) FY2011 survey indicates that despite continuing difficult economic conditions, university and research institute licensing and startup activity remained very strong. The number of licenses and options executed showed healthy increases over FY2010, as did the number of startups that remained active at the end of the fiscal year. FY2011 also saw a modest increase in total research expenditures and another rise in the number of issued patents on top of last year’s record numbers.
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The number of startups formed increased 3 percent and the number of total startups remaining operational increased 7 percent. In addition, the number of licenses and options executed increased 14 and 7 percent, respectively. There was a 24 percent increase in deals with established small companies. The total number of active licenses and options through the close of 2011 was essentially flat and the number of new commercial products created slipped 10 percent.
- 4,899 licenses executed (+14%)
- 1,152 options executed (+7%)
- 416 executed licenses containing equity (+5%)
- 38,600 active licenses and options (+0.3%)
- 671 startup companies formed (+3%), 487 of which had their primary place of business in the licensing institution’s home state (-2%)
- 3,927 startups still operating as of the end of FY2011 (+7%)
- 591 new commercial products created (-10%)
Intellectual Property Management
Patent/legal spending increased 2 percent and legal reimbursements were essentially flat after a decline of 7 percent last year. There was a 5 percent increase in issued patents on top of the large increase reported last year.
Disclosures
- 21,856 disclosures received (+6%)
Patent Filings and Patent/Legal Expenditures
- 19,905 total U.S. patent applications filed (+6 %)
- 13,271 new patent applications filed (+11%)
- 1,193 non-U.S. new patent applications filed (+22%)
- $330 million external legal fees paid (+2%)
- $155 million legal fees reimbursed (-0.8%)
Issued U.S. Patents
- 4,700 issued U.S. patents (+5.2%)
License Income
Running royalties (royalties earned on sale of products) increased 5 percent after a decrease of 15 percent last year and cashed-in equity increased 2 percent after an increase of 160* percent the previous year. All other sources of income (e.g., license issue fees, payments under options, termination payments, annual minimums not supported by product sales) were essentially flat after increasing 25 percent last year. The increase in running royalty is significant because it is an indication that university discoveries are making their way to the marketplace as new products.
- Total income: $2.5 billion (+2.6%)
- Running royalty: $1.5 billion (+5%)
- Cashed-in equity: $64.6 million (+2%)
- Other income: $449.6 million (-0.6%)
Read more of the report here.
University Licensing Activity, 2011
| Institution | 2011 Research Expenditures | 2011 Patents Issued | 2011 Startups | 2011 Licensing Income |
| Northwestern U. | $484,149,349 | 67 | 8 | $191,541,162 |
| U. of California System | 5,418,601,941 | 343 | 58 | 182,049,620 |
| Columbia U. | 714,343,087 | 88 | 15 | 146,319,455 |
| New York U. | 430,752,000 | 64 | 9 | 142,202,157 |
| Princeton U. | 192,940,000 | 33 | 4 | 115,206,000 |
| Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT) | 1,490,429,000 | 174 | 25 | 76,120,000 |
| U. of Washington/Wash. Res. Fdn. | 966,817,063 | 70 | 9 | 67,362,185 |
| Stanford U. | 66,797,246 | |||
| U. of Texas System | 2,546,669,877 | 156 | 20 | 65,359,377 |
| U. of Wisconsin-Madison/WARF | 1,111,641,832 | 156 | 4 | 57,730,000 |
| Wake Forest U. | 187,598,965 | 15 | 3 | 45,733,291 |
| U. of Rochester | 407,244,000 | 27 | 2 | 41,813,373 |
| U. of Utah | 410,305,757 | 47 | 19 | 37,054,745 |
| U. of Massachusetts | 586,708,000 | 64 | 1 | 35,048,951 |
| U. of Florida | 559,156,034 | 86 | 12 | 29,493,522 |
| California Inst. of Technology | 498,688,951 | 132 | 10 | 29,043,617 |
| Mount Sinai School of Medicine | 362,742,541 | 13 | 0 | 25,919,937 |
| Duke U. | 854,368,058 | 52 | 5 | 24,481,478 |
| Institutions Submitting Confidentially | 883,552,512 | 58 | 7 | 20,498,757 |
| U. of Illinois Chicago Urbana | 926,497,000 | 93 | 21 | 17,424,376 |
| U. of Nebraska | 368,331,834 | 23 | 5 | 16,752,176 |
| Emory U. | 496,433,864 | 16 | 6 | 15,899,109 |
| U. of Michigan | 1,236,510,624 | 87 | 11 | 15,608,697 |
| Johns Hopkins U. | 1,517,905,000 | 58 | 11 | 15,285,555 |
| U. of Pennsylvania | 940,218,000 | 68 | 8 | 14,397,705 |
| Harvard U. | 833,200,000 | 60 | 9 | 13,811,527 |
| Research Foundation of State U. of New York | 940,516,702 | 64 | 8 | 12,564,412 |
| Louisiana State U. System | 413,044,000 | 20 | 4 | 11,620,443 |
| Iowa State U. | 300,393,610 | 25 | 2 | 11,307,534 |
| Indiana U. (ARTI) | 454,075,880 | 18 | 7 | 11,125,616 |
| U. of Minnesota | 808,281,000 | 41 | 9 | 10,078,505 |
| Vanderbilt U. | 543,110,182 | 31 | 0 | 9,959,122 |
| Baylor College of Medicine | 373,381,000 | 12 | 2 | 9,925,000 |
| Texas A&M U. System | 705,720,000 | 18 | 4 | 9,264,041 |
| U. of Houston | 113,709,000 | 20 | 1 | 8,861,112 |
| U. of Chicago/UCTech | 405,833,199 | 20 | 3 | 8,673,127 |
| Cornell U. | 795,968,323 | 82 | 10 | 8,503,975 |
| U. of Oregon | 124,655,159 | 5 | 1 | 8,014,503 |
| Georgetown U. | 460,937,804 | 11 | 2 | 7,996,668 |
| U. of Missouri all campuses | 323,768,602 | 33 | 5 | 7,760,779 |
| U. of Virginia Patent Fdn. | 292,106,000 | 37 | 6 | 6,891,374 |
| U. of Georgia | 245,166,000 | 28 | 4 | 6,866,280 |
| U. of Alabama-Birmingham Research Fdn. | 503,698,000 | 12 | 5 | 6,676,056 |
| Dartmouth College | 129,009,772 | 21 | 2 | 6,474,957 |
| Case Western Reserve U. | 335,151,000 | 24 | 4 | 6,303,230 |
| U. of Iowa Research Fdn. | 443,893,000 | 31 | 2 | 6,284,927 |
| Rutgers The State U. of NJ | 473,159,000 | 30 | 8 | 5,978,693 |
| Purdue Research Fdn. | 600,477,000 | 57 | 7 | 5,836,669 |
| Washington U. of St. Louis | 617,646,000 | 26 | 2 | 5,371,218 |
| U. of Southern California | 604,000,000 | 52 | 6 | 5,301,725 |
| North Carolina State U. | 378,154,000 | 51 | 4 | 5,186,844 |
| Carnegie Mellon U. | 251,241,000 | 30 | 10 | 4,965,856 |
| Loyola U. of Chicago | 42,708,007 | 0 | 0 | 4,571,145 |
| Albert Einstein College of Med/Yeshiva U. | 183,514,082 | 14 | 1 | 4,356,987 |
| Georgia Inst. of Technology | 714,760,299 | 79 | 5 | 3,894,370 |
| U. of Pittsburgh | 801,236,000 | 37 | 2 | 3,880,594 |
| U. of Colorado | 790,000,000 | 37 | 11 | 3,870,111 |
| Michigan State U. | 356,765,036 | 38 | 1 | 3,615,627 |
| Oregon State U. | 228,814,000 | 9 | 2 | 3,542,646 |
| Brigham Young U. | 31,443,918 | 3 | 4 | 3,442,516 |
| Tulane U. | 147,716,395 | 5 | 3 | 3,208,650 |
| U. of New Mexico/Sci. & Tech. Corp. | 220,565,787 | 30 | 5 | 3,095,933 |
| Penn State U. | 804,789,000 | 37 | 5 | 2,947,261 |
| U. of South Carolina | 114,853,516 | 10 | 3 | 2,901,036 |
| Tufts U. | 167,580,282 | 16 | 2 | 2,446,595 |
| U. of South Alabama | 42,233,000 | 0 | 2 | 2,400,157 |
| North Dakota State U. | 134,063,862 | 14 | 2 | 1,930,120 |
| Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties Inc. | 247,777,462 | 26 | 1 | 1,815,665 |
| Oklahoma State U. | 190,925,888 | 7 | 1 | 1,691,535 |
| Kansas State U. Research Fdn. | 124,587,415 | 4 | 0 | 1,562,758 |
| U. of Kentucky Research Fdn. | 252,048,000 | 26 | 7 | 1,544,664 |
| U. of North Carolina Chapel Hill | 762,649,004 | 33 | 7 | 1,482,520 |
| Florida State U. | 206,964,109 | 36 | 4 | 1,467,981 |
| Ohio State U. | 823,125,558 | 30 | 6 | 1,420,007 |
| Johns Hopkins U. Applied Physics Laboratory | 1,076,699,823 | 13 | 1 | 1,404,556 |
| U. of South Florida | 400,679,000 | 91 | 8 | 1,390,871 |
| U. of Tennessee | 321,943,518 | 18 | 0 | 1,348,175 |
| Colorado State U. | 330,783,824 | 17 | 5 | 1,311,129 |
| U. System of Maryland | 1,065,903,428 | 77 | 6 | 1,299,608 |
| South Dakota State U. | 63,975,967 | 0 | 0 | 1,283,837 |
| Temple U. | 136,858,186 | 2 | 2 | 1,245,272 |
| Virginia Commonwealth U. | 207,756,000 | 10 | 2 | 1,229,000 |
| Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst. | 71,700,842 | 13 | 2 | 1,160,735 |
| Boston U./Boston Medical Ctr. | 15 | 2 | 1,081,568 | |
| Arizona State U. | 355,214,540 | 18 | 10 | 1,059,372 |
| U. of Miami | 350,020,000 | 7 | 3 | 1,052,731 |
| U. of Alabama in Huntsville | 83,769,182 | 3 | 4 | 1,043,045 |
| U. of Arizona | 610,565,000 | 19 | 8 | 981,495 |
| Clemson U. | 91,969,027 | 22 | 2 | 937,274 |
| U. of Arkansas Fayetteville | 120,007,162 | 8 | 2 | 901,106 |
| U. of Oklahoma All Campuses | 170,568,209 | 31 | 3 | 852,177 |
| Thomas Jefferson Univ | 100,452,376 | 9 | 0 | 837,912 |
| U. of Kansas | 232,249,198 | 8 | 4 | 836,407 |
| U. of Toledo | 74,149,000 | 5 | 2 | 793,008 |
| Utah State U. | 174,167,000 | 9 | 3 | 775,112 |
| U. of Connecticut | 162,682,433 | 18 | 757,360 | |
| U. of Arkansas for Medical Sciences | 84,206,000 | 15 | 2 | 735,841 |
| Wayne State U. | 257,207,000 | 13 | 4 | 727,113 |
| Southern Illinois U. | 36,261,292 | 5 | 677,204 | |
| Auburn U. | 163,335,000 | 17 | 3 | 630,334 |
| U. of Notre Dame | 134,410,396 | 10 | 1 | 559,262 |
| East Carolina U. | 28,995,000 | 4 | 0 | 557,354 |
| Washington State U. Research Fdn. | 201,041,674 | 17 | 4 | 548,439 |
| San Diego State U. | 145,180,658 | 2 | 4 | 530,738 |
| U. of Central Florida | 109,189,000 | 76 | 2 | 500,966 |
| Medical U. of South Carolina | 201,076,102 | 7 | 2 | 431,242 |
| U. of Cincinnati | 249,918,470 | 12 | 3 | 431,104 |
| Medical College of Wisconsin Research Fdn. | 161,151,167 | 8 | 2 | 426,035 |
| U. of New Hampshire | 125,020,503 | 7 | 0 | 397,832 |
| Kent State U. | 27,455,000 | 10 | 2 | 360,037 |
| Mississippi State U. | 226,070,000 | 3 | 5 | 336,436 |
| U. of Vermont | 128,246,463 | 13 | 3 | 319,482 |
| U. of Delaware | 134,363,000 | 1 | 301,199 | |
| Michigan Technological U. | 70,088,629 | 4 | 3 | 296,448 |
| Drexel U. | 114,859,517 | 24 | 2 | 292,827 |
| U. of Idaho | 96,228,831 | 6 | 0 | 289,990 |
| U. of Hawaii | 286,313,039 | 0 | 2 | 282,858 |
| U. of Akron | 69,593,449 | 10 | 2 | 278,648 |
| U. of Mississippi | 61,173,000 | 5 | 271,744 | |
| New Jersey Inst. of Technology | 100,491,000 | 31 | 3 | 267,917 |
| Rice U. | 122,219,899 | 84 | 3 | 249,111 |
| Montana State U. | 102,767,291 | 8 | 0 | 227,342 |
| U. of Louisville | 197,438,000 | 13 | 154,809 | |
| West Virginia U. | 103,599,977 | 4 | 0 | 148,531 |
| Georgia Health Sciences U. | 73,485,693 | 0 | 1 | 148,090 |
| Miami U. | 26,093,000 | 1 | 1 | 130,055 |
| George Mason U. | 91,556,982 | 29 | 4 | 123,372 |
| Colorado School of Mines | 46,700,070 | 4 | 2 | 120,000 |
| U. of Nevada at Reno | 89,740,000 | 9 | 0 | 117,000 |
| U. of North Texas Health Science Ctr. | 41,549,340 | 1 | 1 | 78,475 |
| U. of Dayton Research Inst. | 89,921,738 | 16 | 0 | 70,229 |
| Portland State U. | 64,800,000 | 4 | 0 | 69,281 |
| Lehigh U. | 43,584,269 | 5 | 0 | 63,310 |
| U. of North Carolina at Greensboro | 35,604,104 | 0 | 1 | 51,274 |
| U. of South Dakota | 34,000,000 | 0 | 50,000 | |
| Northern Arizona U. | 30,785,000 | 0 | 0 | 42,684 |
| Boston College | 42,075,693 | 4 | 2 | 41,316 |
| U. of Montana | 63,857,146 | 3 | 0 | 34,155 |
| Louisiana Tech U. | 27,583,000 | 7 | 0 | 31,500 |
| Northern Illinois U. | 23,866,445 | 2 | 0 | 30,373 |
| U. of North Carolina Charlotte | 29,829,730 | 10 | 3 | 28,592 |
| U. of Alaska | 105,500,000 | 0 | 0 | 25,000 |
| New Mexico State U. | 119,795,451 | 2 | 1 | 21,982 |
| Eastern Virginia Medical School | 36,569,000 | 0 | 1 | 15,000 |
| Florida International U. | 84,162,535 | 3 | 0 | 12,351 |
| U. of Alabama | 53,633,000 | 3 | 0 | 8,593 |
| Wright State U. | 48,501 | 3 | 0 | 4,835 |
| Bowling Green State U. | 8,021,973 | 5 | 0 | 2,290 |
| Boise State U. | 24,204,099 | 7 | 0 | 500 |
| Oregon Health & Science U. | 334,499,983 | 12 | 3 | 0 |
| Duquesne U. | 15,243,000 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Idaho State U. | 18,195,432 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| U. of West Florida | 15,538,928 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Baylor U. | 12,343,000 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | $55,074,821,326 | 4,296 | 617 | $1,813,968,412 |
