Mid Sweden University becomes Sweden´s first Easy Access Intellectual Property (IP) University
Mid Sweden University has received the go ahead to launch its Easy Access IP project. This new initiative enables researchers to share their knowledge and expertise with commercial partners.
"It is extremely positive that we have been approved as an Easy Access IP university. It proves that we are at the forefront of innovative work", according to Anders Söderholm, Vice Chancellor of Mid Sweden University.
Through the Easy Access IP project, entrepreneurs will be able to get free access to university research. It is anticipated that inventors who would like to share their intellectual property for public benefit yet who themselves do not want to start their own company, will be able to give their inventions away using quick and simple Easy Access IP licensing agreements.
“Easy Access is a new concept, leaps and bounds ahead of traditional innovation work. There are no more complicated, lengthy negotiations or costly licensing agreements. We hope that Easy Access is the missing piece of the puzzle enabling universities to make a more considerable contribute to national economics, says Eva Rosén, Director of MIUN Innovation, who has worked to make the Easy Access project a reality for Mid Sweden University.
In return for sharing their research, the recipients must acknowledge the respective innovators and Mid Sweden University as the source of the technical knowledge and inventions. As a result it is hoped that this will lead to greater opportunities for the innovators and for Mid Sweden University, to effectuate further partnerships with industry.
Mid Sweden University opted to pursue the project mainly because the university wants to increase the engagement between academia and industry. Something that Anders Söderholm, Vice Chancellor, hopes will come about through the Easy Access project.
Easy Access increases and broadens the ability of the university to collaborate with the surrounding community in order to create opportunities not only for the university but also for business and commerce. “I believe this can be the start of both a paradigm shift in the way we regard cooperation and also an entirely new way to create added value. The hope is that we can develop a tool to transfer new technology into the marketplace faster,” says Anders Söderholm.
That Mid Sweden University is among the first ten universities worldwide to adopt Easy Access is a direct result of the university's innovation profile.
“I believe that a new university is more disposed to innovational thinking and able to embrace new groundbreaking methods,” says Eva Rosén, Director of MIUN Innovation.
Mid Sweden University was officially appointed an Easy Access Innovation Partner Thursday, 27th October 2011. During the coming months the innovation support network intend to work to develop routines to implement the Easy Access model.