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Discover our diverse portfolio of startup companies, each making strides in their respective fields through innovative solutions.
Discover groundbreaking innovations in our Innovation Showcase. Stay up to date on the latest advancements and technologies emerging from the Zucker Institute.
SC Bio: The Science of Success, uniting industry leaders, executives, officials, and supporters in Greenville, SC for insightful sessions on biotech, medtech, pharma, digital health, policy, therapeutics, and economic development.
AUTM: Where technology transfer professionals from around the globe meet to connect, make deals and gain insights from world-class speakers and panels.
BIO: Where business and breakthroughs converge. Whether it’s across hemispheres or across the aisle, BIO brings the industry together to solve the most pressing issues facing our world.
Discover our diverse portfolio of startup companies, each making strides in their respective fields through innovative solutions.
We prioritize partnerships with companies interested in commercializing our inventors’ innovations. Depending on the innovation’s type and stage of development, partnerships may involve:
Licensing an innovation
Sponsoring further research
Engaging as a consultant
Industry partners should review our intellectual property, licensing agreements, and research collaboration policies. Our team will guide you through the necessary procedures for collaboration.
Explore our [link to Technologies page]Technologies page[/link to Technologies page] to discover the innovations our inventors are developing, or contact us for more information.
Our licensing managers utilize various strategies to identify potential licensees, including leveraging existing relationships, conducting market research, and attending industry events. We also promote inventions through our website and direct outreach efforts.
Studies have shown that the majority of licenses result from contacts already known by the inventors or ZI staff. We also identify licensees through market research, industry events, and existing relationships.
Finding a potential licensee can vary in duration, depending on factors such as the innovation’s attractiveness and stage of development. Most university inventions require substantial commercialization investment, impacting the time to attract a licensee.
Industry partners’ active involvement significantly improves the chances of finding a licensee. Utilize your industry networks to identify potential licensees and communicate the technical advantages of the innovation.
Yes, an invention can be licensed to multiple companies, either non-exclusively or exclusively for specific applications or geographies.
We understand that you may have questions regarding our resources and support for researchers. Below are some frequently asked questions to provide you with the insights you need.
We have to provide your home address and citizenship to the USPTO. We also use your home address to mail royalty checks to you.
Under federal law, MUSC is required to report to the Government inventions created under sponsored research. If MUSC decides not to take title to such an invention (that is, decides not to keep it), then the Government has rights to it. Non-Government sponsors may also have intellectual property clauses and obligations attached to such sponsorship with which the Zucker Institute must comply.
In the U.S., an inventor has one year from the date of public disclosure in which to file a patent application. Once that year has passed, the invention cannot be patented.
The MUSC IP policy gives the university rights to anything that you create within your hired field of expertise. It is blind to the time use to work on the innovation. Compliance with the policy is a condition of employment and student status. View the policies.
We understand that you may have questions regarding our resources and support for researchers. Below are some frequently asked questions to provide you with the insights you need.
The Zucker Institute provides many services to MUSC, including the following:
Please contact [email protected].
No. Companies wishing to sponsor research at MUSC may contact the MUSC Office of Research and Sponsored Programs. Although, the Zucker Institute does take into consideration the amount of sponsored research funding provided by a licensee when determining the valuation of a license agreement.
Intellectual Property arising from research at MUSC is offered for commercialization via option and license agreements only. Intellectual property generated using federal funding is prohibited from being assigned by U.S. law. Even if a technology was created without the use of federal funds, option and license agreements best serve the mission of the Zucker Institute and MUSC.
Yes. If a company is interested in further evaluation and testing of a technology, option agreements are available. Optionees pay a modest upfront option fee, an option exercise fee and all related patent and/or copyright expenses during the term of the option agreement.
No. Patent prosecution is difficult to predict and the laws vary from country to country. The Zucker Institute encourages all potential licensees to confer with a third-party patent attorney to better appreciate the risks involved with patent prosecution before a license agreement is signed.
No. Such in-depth legal analyses become quickly outdated as new art and patent applications come to light. The Zucker Institute encourages all potential licensees to confer with a third-party patent attorney to conduct such an analysis during due diligence.
No. The Zucker Institute is a separate 501(c)3 nonprofit entity that provides technology transfer services to the Medical University of South Carolina.
The “Bayh-Dole Act” is Title 35, Sections 200-212 of the United States Code. Among other things, these provisions provide the U.S. government with non-exclusive rights to patents arising from federal funding.
Yes. The MUSC Intellectual Property Policy (PDF) calls for net proceeds to be distributed to inventors/authors, their labs, their departments, their colleges and the university.
The Zucker Institute for Innovation Commercialization (ZI) independently evaluates and manages the intellectual
assets owned and generated by MUSC.
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