|
ktMINE |
|
|
|
|
December 22, 2014 Issue |
||
|
The Most Powerful Name In Corporate News and Information |
|||
|
Capturing and Providing Data used in Researching Innovations and Intellectual Property Portfolios |
|||
|
President & CEO
ktMINE
Interview conducted by: Lynn Fosse, Senior Editor, CEOCFO Magazine, Published – December 22, 2014
CEOCFO: Mr. Jarczyk, would you tell us the concept at ktMINE?
Mr. Jarczyk: Intellectual property represents up to 80% of a company’s value, but there is a problem if one is looking to capture information about a company’s intellectual property and innovation. The data exists in the public domain, but it is not accessible. It is scattered, unstructured and hard to find, making it unusable. At ktMINE, we find, organize and connect this data, thereby making it usable. Our goal is to provide transparency around intellectual property and innovation.
CEOCFO: Why is it an area that has gone unnoticed for so long?
Mr. Jarczyk: Oftentimes, we are afraid of, or shy away from, things we do not understand. Historically, there has been difficulty coming up with ways to account for intellectual property. If you look at the financial statements for any well-known company, intellectual property tends to be a sub-item or afterthought. It is not something that is addressed or valued for shareholders. Intellectual property represents up to 80% of a company’s value, so wouldn’t you want to know more about it as a shareholder?
Recently, there have been surveys where the C-suite admits to not understanding intellectual property, but understands it is valuable. Additionally, the importance of intellectual property has become commonplace in mainstream media. We now get questions such as: What do I do with this asset? How do I maximize its value? How do I ensure my shareholders get a return? There is a need to find meaningful information about intellectual property and innovation. ktMINE is positioned to serve this need.
CEOCFO: What were the challenges in putting together your offering and what exactly is the offering?
Mr. Jarczyk: The offering is organized and usable data. The challenge is to customize the offering for our customers and determine the most appropriate way for them to consume the data, thereby maximizing the data’s value. By definition, the raw data is unorganized, unstructured, and scattered. ktMINE’s challenge is to organize the data, connect the dots, and make it usable for a vast array of use cases. Before ktMINE, you would have to scour the public domain to find this information. We have essentially put it in a nice file cabinet for you.
CEOCFO: Is it getting the right algorithms, the right mindset, knowing where to look or all of the above?
Mr. Jarczyk: All of the above. Our current process has two parts. First, we use knowledge experts to research and organize a particular data set. This allows us to figure out how to find, organize, and connect the data manually in order to perfect the manual process. Then, we apply technology and data analytics to automate the process. We follow this formula for all the data that we continuously add. Every time we find a new data set, we start the process over.
CEOCFO: Who is using your service?
Mr. Jarczyk: We partner with professional service firms, such as accounting firms, law firms, and management consultants, who utilize us to accelerate the pace of researching companies’ innovations and intellectual property portfolios. We partner with corporations who want to monitor the competitions’ innovations. We partner with technology transfer offices who want to monetize their innovations, and we partner with global government agencies who use our data for intelligence purposes.
CEOCFO: What is your geographic range?
Mr. Jarczyk: Our data is global. Once we find, organize and connect the data, we find that over 50% of our information is for territories outside the U.S.
CEOCFO: Are there areas you would like to add?
Mr. Jarczyk: We are always adding new data sets, and we regularly create proprietary data sets based on customers’ requirements. Recently, we had a customer who wanted to augment our patent and license agreement information in the pharmaceutical space by adding FDA approval data. We were able to find the information and connect it to our current data, providing valuable insight to the customer.
CEOCFO: Is there data that you cannot get with technology yet because perhaps they are not set up from the regulatory agency?
Mr. Jarczyk: Absolutely. Data disclosure is a big challenge, and we spend time lobbying government bodies and companies around the world to increase the information that is made publicly available. Furthermore, there are situations where data has gaps. For example, a company may disclose its licensing activity, but redact important details. Another company may assign a patent, but not record it with the proper agencies. The good news is that our work makes these gaps apparent, allowing our customers to better analyze the information.
CEOCFO: How do you reach perspective clients?
Mr. Jarczyk: We have a fantastic business development team, and our sales leads are well-respected experts in their market. For example, our head of law firm sales is a patent attorney, and our head of consulting sales is a former consultant. We find that it works best to have individuals selling to their peers. This ensures our customers’ needs are understood and met.
CEOCFO: Has there been similar offerings available in the past?
Mr. Jarczyk: There are numerous firms that specialize in a portion of our information. For example, there are many patent search firms and a few trademark search firms. Bits and pieces of data are covered by different companies for different purposes. Our clients have a different need that we satisfy. They want to see the full picture, which requires aggregating and connecting many data sets. This is what makes our offering unique.
CEOCFO: What kind of pushback if any, do you get?
Mr. Jarczyk: The biggest challenge we face is educating our prospects that the data sets exist, and that the connected data is more powerful than the parts. Because we play with this data every day, we can see things that others may not yet appreciate. We handle this challenge by ensuring we first solve the clients’ needs, and then share advice on how to grow beyond the current need. As a firm, we have learned that our clients appreciate sharing of best practices and education, and we make every effort to do so at the appropriate times.
CEOCFO: With the buzzword of big data covering all kinds of info these days, does that get in the way of understanding ktMINE?
Mr. Jarczyk: I appreciate that there is a lot of noise around the concept of big data, and there are many players in the industry. Our unique value proposition is that ktMINE is going to help you gather intelligence around innovation and intellectual property, and we stick to that message. Even though we are a data company, the message remains focused on solving our customers’ needs. That is what keeps us differentiated in our customers’ minds.
CEOCFO: Do you need to keep on top of regulatory issues to be alert to what you might need to change in the database?
Mr. Jarczyk: Definitely, which is why our technology is adaptable. To the extent that there are any changes in regulations that translate to changes in the way data hits the public domain, we are able to adapt relatively quickly. We have experts on staff who stay on top of such changes and make recommendations for adjustments to our technology and data analysis.
CEOCFO: You have a couple specific offerings; what do you provide?
Mr. Jarczyk: ktMINE has two offerings. First, we have an online platform, which offers various tools, advanced searching capabilities, and analytics. Because our platform caters to the needs of a big base of customers, it is standardized to maximize user experience. We also offer custom data feeds and reports to our customers, allowing them to maximize the information and value enjoyed by using ktMINE. Believe it or not, more and more of our customers are opting for customized data, as the slight increase in cost is far outweighed by the benefit the customized data provides.
CEOCFO: What might be different a year from now?
Mr. Jarczyk: Obviously our data sets are going to continue to grow, and the big question is going to be: how do we remain in-touch with our customers to understand what data is the most valuable. It is critical for us to listen to our customers. Furthermore, I believe we will see a deeper understanding of intellectual property within the C-suite and by investors, driving companies and investors to need more of our data.
CEOCFO: Why pay attention to ktMINE?
Mr. Jarczyk: Whether you are running a business, investing in a business, or consulting for a business, you need to understand competitors’ innovations, and you need to know the value and risks associated with intellectual property. ktMINE gives you the data to succeed. |
“Whether you are running a business, investing in a business, or consulting for a business, you need to understand competitors’ innovations, and you need to know the value and risks associated with intellectual property. ktMINE gives you the data to succeed.”- David R. Jarczyk
ktMINE
Contact: David R. Jarczyk +1 (312) 253-0926
|
||
|
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
Data Mining Groups, ktMINE, Knowledge Technology Companies, CEO Interviews 2014, David R. Jarczyk, Capturing and Providing Data used in Researching Innovations and Intellectual Property Portfolios, database of royalty rate comparables, source license agreements bioinformatics, algorithmics, Business Services Company, Recent CEO Interviews, account for intellectual property, asset value, organizing data making it usable, solutions for consuming data, thereby maximizing the data’s value, apply technology and data analytics to automate data mining, data mining and analysis for professional service firms, accounting firms, law firms, and management consultants and corporations who want to monitor the competitions’ innovations, technology transfer offices who want to monetize their innovations, and partner with global government agencies who use our data for intelligence purposes, ktMINE Press Releases, News Tech Stock, Companies looking for venture capital, Angel Investors, private companies looking for investors, technology companies seeking investors, data mining companies needing investment capital |
|||
|
|
|||
David
R. Jarczyk