Spin-Outs: Creating Business from University Intellectual Property

Universities increasingly encourage spin-out companies from their own departments, and interest from entrepreneurs and the commercial sphere is only set to develop further in coming years. This book by an academic, as well as a businessman, is a guide for those who are thinking about commercializing intellectual property and creating a spin-out company. Written in an informative and enjoyable style, the author describes his personal experiences of the processes involved in launching a spin-out, from the key decisions that have to be made through those inevitable mistakes to be learned from. The Chemistry Department at Oxford University has played a central role in the spin-out companies that have emerged from the department. As a former head of Chemistry at Oxford, the author is uniquely placed to describe the process. He places a real-life focus on his account by using examples of the businesses in which he was personally involved, drawing extensively on the case study of Oxford Molecular Ltd. to show how this company was spun-out in practice. The book provides invaluable information for universities about what can be achieved and how. It also provides guidance to entrepreneurs with thoughts of creating a high-tech company, the pitfalls, the problems, and what is needed, as well as an indication of the potential benefits to all concerned.