Campus Companies and the University

There is much impetus at the moment to increase the number so companies coming out of the university sector that are based on the technology created in the university. Governments across Europe and indeed further afield are anxious to try and harness the creative and innovative expertise in the universities to increase employment and move new companies into the market that have a position further up the value chain. It is a good theory but it does cause a few wrinkles when it comes to implementation. Its all down to incentives. Most universities are dependant on the funding of the state to keep the doors open. If governments incentivise campus companies then technologies will be pushed in that direction. When governments incentivised licensing there were very few new companies coming out of the universities. Does this mean the technologies were not there. Probably not true. What it does suggest is that some companies that are formed now are doing so with technology that may be better placed to be in an existing company. As so many start ups fail it just seems to be delaying the commercial exploitation of technologies by putting some of them into campus companies. The key is to get the funding of the companies right from the start. I think it is important for incentives from government be more nuanced then just saying a company is good just by virtue of existence. Incentives should be for a start up from the university have finance before it starts from genuine independent sources, not just the 3 fs "family, friends and fools". If this is there, then people who have skin in the game will get it going or get it shut quickly, avoiding the dithering of failed entities limping along denying the university and the community access to important technology. If future funding is not successful then the technology reverts and should be auctioned at the first opportunity. These should be government run auctions across the state. That way companies with no capacity to add value will be found out quickly because buyers will just wait for companies to fail and buy the technology later. If however the company itself has value then it will survive and show itself to be investable. That's what the government want, that's what the universities really want, and that's what is the best thing to do, so we should do it