Kaler on the commercialization of research

Forum Question: Do you support the commercialization of research?

Universities don’t have deep pockets. Their ability to protect intellectual property is very limited. They need to reach out to companies — established and start-up — to help them.

I’m interested in commercialization. It’s critical to tap the intellectual property that staff and faculty have created., to partner with start-ups and existing firms. Using university resources for private profit is a nuanced issue. We need to be very protective. But there have been a few blockbuster patents that universities have benefited from, so I’m interested.

Note: All of the questions and answers I’ll be posting about Kaler are not verbatim.

About the blogger

Alex Friedrich

afriedrich@mpr.org

Alex Friedrich reports on higher education issues for MPR News. Among the stories he has covered: the fall of the Berlin Wall, aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis, 2003 Moscow suicide bombing and 2004 presidential elections in the Republic of Georgia. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and a master’s in European political economy from the London School of Economics.