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
what are UK and eu legislations?
UK: - human fertilisation and embryology act - human tissue act EU: - EU directives - represent minimum standards required ., member states can impose stricter legislation
what are investors?
wealthy individuals, banks, pension funds, insurance companies
what are 2 things that patent rights are not?
1) a right to perform the invention - someone could hold other IP that stops you making your product
2) a monopoly in the marketplace - cant manipulate prices
what can and cant you patent for in biotechnology?
can patent genetically modified products
cant patent human cloning as it is regarded unethical
describe the cans and cants for medical method patents?
devices and products for practising medical methods can be patentable but the methods themselves are not patentable because it must not prevent doctors curing/preventing illness and methods can have different effects on different patients so arent reproducible
