Lecture 17 Flashcards
what are the 6 steps in forming a company?
1) Idea - innovation - or use of existing technologies and new efficient way of doing it
2) Protect the intellectual property e.g. patented technology - protects you from other people doing the same thing
3) Talk to experts
4) Find management
5) Write a business plan
6) Raise the money
what are the pros and cons of starting up a company?
pros:
1) improve heath care
2) create new employment
3) make money
cons:
1) its hard work
2) its risky (financial, career prospects)
describe starting a company based on innovation?
- requires that something new is bought to the market
- businesses commonly have to protect their innovative technology by patenting
- patented technology provides a big advantage
- typically risky, time consuming and expensive
describe starting a company based on established technology?
- can be bought to the market quickly
- you may have to pay for a license to use the property ou don’t own
- competitors may be able to copy the buisness
- success is dependent upon providing products or services faster/cheaper than the competition
what are the two types of company and describe them?
1) service company - supplying something - low risk - small returns
2) biotechnology company - new transformative idea - high risk - big returns
what are venture companies?
- bring together people that want to invest into the biotechnology business
- raise money from investors and invest in new companies
describe a venture fund
- usual fund size = 50-300 million
- 1-2% per year is used for overheads
- after replacing investment any profit is split 80% investors - 20% venture company fund managers
- investment period 5-7 years, return 7-10 years
- target return = 3 fold
what are the 3 stages of a typical deal?
1) seed funding 50k-1m
2) series funding A - money raised - 5-10 m
- 10% of company for founders
- 20% of company for employee incentive
70% of company belongs to VCs
3) series B,c - 15-20m
-usually will have to be a number of companies that invest in order to get enough money
-VCs own the company as soon as series A funding has begun
what power to the VCs have?
- fill the board
- control company management
- work with CEO to make all major decisions
what are 3 exit strategies?
1) initial public offering - selling shares to the public
2) Merger - with another similar entity
3) Acquisition - other companies buy you out
what are 2 alternatives to venture funds?
1) angel funding - rich individuals with spare cash
2) public funds for stimulating buisness
what are 3 ways to protect your intellectual property?
1) patents - right to exclude others from; making, using, offering for sale and selling or importing - strict rules about what has to be disclosed - patents cannot be obtained for everything - once a patent has been filed nothing else can be patented for it because there will be history of the patenting
2) copyright - grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights for it use and distribution - protects only the original expression of ideas and not the underlying ideas themselves
3) design right (UK) - protects the shape of a 3D design
what are 5 things that can be patented?
1) process e.g a way to make a differentiated cell type
2) machine
3) article of manufacture
4) composition of matter
5) improvement of any of the above
6 things patents cannot be obtained for?
1) laws of nature
2) physical phenomena
3) abstract ideas
4) literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works
5) inventions
6) a procedure
what are 3 UK regulators?
1) HFEA - human fertilisation and embryology authority
2) HTA - human tissue authority
3) MHRA - medicinal and healthcare products regulatory authority
