Overview
IPotential specializes in helping companies create, manage and execute world-class Intellectual Property (IP) strategies to obtain the optimal value from their IP assets. IP assets, such as patents, copyrights and trade secrets, are already important sources of business revenue. For example, patent licensing alone has been estimated at $110 billion for 2000 and is expected to reach $500 billion by 2015.
While such figures are impressive, it is generally recognized that many companies vastly underutilize their IP assets - IP has the potential to deliver value in many ways in addition to generating revenue.
Many companies have come to realize that managing IP assets to their full potential is a tremendous opportunity for enhancing their competitive position and gaining business advantage. Equally important is the value IP has in helping to reduce the risk from others seeking to enforce their IP rights as well as to create opportunities for moving into new markets. Reflecting this growing realization of the importance of IP to business, nearly every Fortune 500 company with a technology-based core competency maintains an IP asset management function today. The key to taking full advantage of IP assets, however, is to view them as business assets and to manage them accordingly - as part of a company's comprehensive strategic plan.
IPotential brings together the legal, technical and business expertise necessary for technology-based companies to manage their IP assets as business assets. Our breadth and depth of expertise in using IP as a business asset enables us to team with our clients to help them define their business objectives and create the right strategy to use IP to achieve those objectives. Because of our experience, our strategies are not just "pearls of wisdom," we identify concrete actions and concrete metrics that allow our clients to deliver on that strategy and to continue to deliver value throughout the complete lifecycle of their IP assets. Also important, especially in today's economy, is our experience at highly cost-effective approaches for implementing IP management strategies.
IPotential was formed in 2003 by Ron Epstein, who had had leadership roles in IP asset management at Intel and Brocade Communications. Epstein came to the conclusion, based upon firsthand experience, that IP must be managed as a strategic asset in order to be fully utilized. Years of direct bottom-line responsibility for delivering value to shareholders from their employer's IP assets have allowed Epstein to see the benefits of moving from the traditional view of managing IP assets as a collection of individual pieces to viewing IP strategy as a cornerstone of a comprehensive business strategy. Taking their cue from corporate finance, which has long recognized the need for strategic management of financial assets, Epstein formed IPotential in order to serve as strategic advisor, broker, negotiator and value creator to leading technology companies.
Ron Epstein
CEO
Ron Epstein is Founder and CEO of IPotential. With more than 20 years of experience in developing, optimizing, and transacting Intellectual Property (IP) asset portfolios, Ron is recognized as a global leader in helping patent owners maximize the value of their IP. As a market-maker, Ron has been instrumental in defining the category of patent brokers in the emerging patent marketplace, delivering over $1 billion of value from the sale or licensing of patents in over 150 transactions.
Prior to founding IPotential in early 2004, Ron was vice president and general counsel at Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. where he created and implemented Brocade's IP strategy, developing a valuable patent portfolio and defending the company in three patent litigations filed during that period.
Prior to Brocade, Ron served as Director of Licensing at Intel Corporation, where he was responsible for driving the company's IP licensing strategy. Among his accomplishments at Intel were the creation of the first ever dedicated corporate patent purchasing program and the development of Intel's defensive and value licensing programs. Ron developed an expertise in defense against patent assertions and consummated numerous patent licensing and purchasing transactions resulting hundreds of millions of dollars in risk reduction.
Prior to Intel, Ron built his IP legal career at Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati as a member of the Technology Licensing Group, where he specialized in helping clients minimize liability under the patent portfolios of leading companies such as IBM, Lucent, and Intel and in negotiating patent cross-license agreements in conjunction with complex patent litigation settlements.
Ron holds a B.S. from Duke University and a J.D. from the School of Law, University of California at Berkeley.
Zack Higgins
General Counsel
Zack Higgins has 11 years of experience in patent strategy, analysis, and litigation. Before joining IPotential, Zack was a partner at Kirkland & Ellis and an associate at Morrison & Foerster. Zack managed all aspects of patent cases regarding diverse technologies, for Fortune 500 and other companies. Zack successfully represented plaintiffs and defendants in a range of jurisdictions including the Eastern District of Texas, and helped secure total victory in the largest patent case in the history of the International Trade Commission. Zack also counseled clients regarding patents and other intellectual property in contexts including licensing, potential litigation, and patent portfolio analysis. Zack focused on the technical analysis of patents, wrote software code and used computers intensively to facilitate that analysis, and enjoyed a paperless office. Before becoming a lawyer, Zack worked in Tokyo as a computer graphic designer for a Japanese advertising agency.
Zack graduated from Harvard Law School, cum laude, and earned a B.A. in history and international studies from Yale University, cum laude, with distinction in both majors.
Steve Knauer
Chief Patent Counsel
Steve Knauer has 15 years of experience in prosecuting and analyzing technology-related patents. Prior to joining IPotential, Steve was IP Counsel for Gemplus where he managed all of the company’s IP matters originating in the Americas including patent litigation, defending the company against patent assertions, analyzing the infringement of the Company's patents, creating assertion-based patent licensing programs, and patent and trademark prosecution management. Prior to Gemplus, Steve was a Partner at Flehr, Hohbach, Test, Albittron & Herbert where he prepared and prosecuted hundreds of patent applications on sophisticated technologies, including semiconductor devices, telecommunications systems, computer networks, software, nanotechnology, and business methods . In addition, Steve counseled clients on strategic IP matters, such as developing and managing their patent portfolios and providing validity and infringement analysis. Before Steve began his legal career, he was a systems engineer at Rockwell International. Steve holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of California at Los Angeles and a J.D. from the National Law Center at the George Washington University. Steve is also a member of the California State Bar and is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Sabrina Chang
Director of Patent Valuation
Sabrina Chang has 5 years of experience working in patent evaluation. Prior to joining IPotential, Sabrina was an associate at Kirkland and Ellis as well as McDermott, Will and Emery focusing her practice in patent litigation and counseling. Before becoming an attorney, she was an examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Sabrina began her professional career in strategy consulting with a focus on wireless and e-commerce technologies.
Sabrina obtained her B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center. She is a member of the California State Bar and is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Leslie Harrison
Director of Account Management
Leslie Harrison brings 18 years of tech industry sales and account management experience to IPotential. Her technical acumen has grown with the needs of Silicon Valley’s most successful businesses spanning hardware, software, networking equipment, programming languages, web development tools, web traffic analytics, panel research analytics, online ad serving technology, ad targeting technology and online video toolsets.
Her career began at Apple Computer, Inc. where she was trained to support and market Apple hardware and software for businesses and end users. She transitioned to the web early on, joining I/PRO, the original web auditing company in 1995. She sold web traffic verification, analysis and research services to the founding publishers of the internet including Yahoo!, Starwave, and Excite as well as early advertisers such as Intel, HP and Microsoft. Leslie spent six years with I/PRO, leading the national sales team to record growth. I/PRO was purchased by CMGI and merged with several other leading companies to reemerge as Engage. Leslie has maintained her relationship with online publishers, holding senior sales and account management roles for leading online advertising platform and network companies such as Microsoft’s Advertising Business Unit, DoubleClick (acquired by Google), TACODA (acquired by AOL), Asterpix and YuMe.
Leslie holds a B.S. in International Marketing from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
Cindy Hoang
Operations Director
Cindy brings 9 years of patent experience to the IPotential team. Prior to joining IPotential, she was a paralegal at various firms in the bay area; namely, Gray Cary, Morrison & Foerster, and Bozicevic Field & Francis. Cindy has a broad base of industry experience, working with clients in high technology, life sciences, and medical devices.
Contact Us
To discuss your patent sale or acquisition needs or for any other questions you may have, please call 650.572.9500 or e-mail: inquiry@ipotential.com
