A Study On Valuation Factors of Patent

It is well known that in the knowledge-based economy a firm's intellectual property including patent is crucial for its competitive advantage. In industrial economy, tangible assets such as land and equipment have been of critical importance for a firm's competitiveness. However, as the paradigm shift to the knowledge-base economy is being accelerated, intangible assets such as intellectual property are considered to be more influential for a firm to be competitive. The valuation of intangible asset is as necessary as that of tangible asset. In particular, reasonably accurate valuation of patent which represents a firm's technological competitiveness seems to be of great importance since (1) it is essential for a firm's patent strategy development, (2) it can activate the technology market, and (3) it is necessary to evaluate a patent's technological contribution when multiple patents are used to develop and commercialize an innovative product. Unlike that of tangible asset, the valuation of intangible asset is very difficult. In order to figure out a value of patent it is necessary to use a number of appropriate valuation factors. In this paper, we surveyed various valuation factors presented by previous researches and several technology valuation organizations to find a set of common valuation factors considered to be of more importance.