As we are all ready to celebrate the end of a long and challenging year, here is more good news that is cause for celebration: LOT Network had yet another record year of growth adding both more members and more patent assets under license in a single year than ever before.  With the addition of companies like Dell, VMware, Pepsi, Geely, BMW, PNC Bank, Tokogawa Electric, BestBuy, Grab, Snap, DJI, Wish.com, Olympus, and Element Solutions just this quarter, LOT Network now has more than 1,100 members. So far over 550 companies that own over 400,000 assets were added to our community this year alone, which reaffirms that LOT works: we can immunize companies from millions of assets in the hands of a PAE while at the same time preserving the traditional uses of patents.

Need more proof?  Our friends at Cipher put together a study of the assets that are in our community and of those that have left. LOT members are immunized against 12% of all U.S. patents.  You can view a copy of the report here. As our membership grows, so does our protection — and we are proud to say that we are providing significant immunization against risks and costs of PAE litigation.

What does this mean for companies and their IP strategies? Very simply, everyone in the world has access to our membership. More importantly, with the addition of IBM, there should no longer be a stigma against companies who sell to PAEs as part of their IP strategy. 

I also wanted to remind members that AST has generously made certain program features available to LOT Network members for free. They are offering us the ability to license and/or purchase some of the assets that they have acquired. If you’re interested in finding out more, please contact Russ Bins or Ray Strimaitis. 

In the coming year, we hope to roll out additional offerings that are of value to our members.

We wish you a safe and happy holiday season, and look forward to celebrating together in person at LOT Network BRIDGE, our annual members meeting, in San Francisco, September 15-16, 2021.  More details here.

 

Ken Seddon

CEO, LOT Network