CHICAGO--()--The Intellectual Property Exchange International, Inc. and related entities (IPXI) announced today the completion of a $10 million funding round by a group of U.S. and European investors including CBOE Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: CBOE), parent of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CB0E), the world’s largest options exchange and creator of listed options, and Royal Philips Electronics (Philips), the world leader in healthcare, lifestyle and lighting.
The investment will allow IPXI to build out its infrastructure in order to issue the first Unit License Right™ Contract (ULR Contract) offerings in 2012. ULR Contracts present a more transparent and efficient alternative to the traditional bilateral licensing of patents and other intellectual property, enabling owners to monetize patents through standard contracts with unit-based market pricing and transparent reporting.
Concurrent with this transaction, IPXI President and CEO Gerard J. Pannekoek was named as exchange Co-Chairman. Mr. Pannekoek is the former President and Chief Operating Officer of the Chicago Climate Exchange.
New Directors appointed to the Board of IPXI include Marshall Phelps, former Corporate Vice President, IP Policy & Strategy for Microsoft and former Vice President of IP & Licensing for IBM; Ruud Peters, Executive Vice President and Chief Intellectual Property Officer of Philips; and Richard G. DuFour, CBOE’s Executive Vice President.
“Today represents a significant step forward for IPXI as the central marketplace for IP transactions and technology transfer. Our search for the right strategic investment and Board partners has yielded the best possible result,” explained Pannekoek. “The collective IP thought leadership of our Board is second to none.” Phelps, Peters and DuFour join Pannekoek and Ocean Tomo executives James E. Malackowski and Michael D. Friedman on the IPXI Board.
IPXI began with a goal to maintain the exchange headquarters in Chicago with CBOE as its preferred exchange partner. “CBOE’s investment in IPXI’s ground-breaking concept was a natural fit. Product innovation, transparent pricing and standardized, regulated contracts – all central to CBOE’s business model – are also crucial components for the success of IPXI,” DuFour said. “We see tremendous potential for IPXI’s tradable intellectual property products, and as these products gain traction, there will be opportunities to develop related derivatives products.”
Today’s announcement has been made possible only after several years of industry town hall meetings and in-depth working sessions with dozens of leading corporate, university and laboratory IP owners to assure that the exchange meets their needs.
“By participating in IPXI, we contribute to shaping a transparent marketplace for licensing IP in a new and innovative manner and which creates a new channel for generating revenues from our IP assets,” added Peters.
Over the past 35 years, the leading world economies have experienced an economic inversion transforming from manufacturing into an innovation economy. With a market value of approximately $9.2 trillion, intellectual property is the largest U.S. asset class (it is also one of the largest asset classes globally). More than $1 trillion is invested annually in the creation of intangible assets.
About IPXI
IPXI is the world’s first financial exchange focused on Intellectual Property. The mission of IPXI is to meet the price discovery, transaction, and data distribution needs of IP owners, investors, and traders, as well as other market participants by creating the central marketplace for IP assets and trading products.
Through its innovative product offerings, IPXI facilitates investment and risk management in IP-related assets, allows IP owners to unlock the value of their assets, and creates efficient technology transfer markets to improve price discovery for IP-related assets and risks.