What Are Intangible Assets?

"Intangible assets" is a term used more often by accountants than attorneys. However, this class of intellectual property should be recognized as a large part of any IP strategy that seeks to protect and leverage a company's entire technology portfolio. The economic value of technology companies often lies outside "traditional" IP such as patents, trademarks and copyrights and can be found in the form of trade secrets, know how, technical data generated from research and development, government licenses (e.g., FDA, EPA, and USDA authorizations to manufacture or perform certain activities), collaboration activities, and more generally "human capital." A comprehensive intellectual property strategy should include these assets, which are often more important to a business's bottom line than traditional forms of intellectual property.

While accounting standards treat various intangible assets differently depending upon the useful life, impairment, amortization, etc. of the asset, an important aspect of intangible assets is that their value can be leveraged for the benefit of your business. In other words, the value of an intangible asset need not derive from a certain serial number provided by the federal government (like a patent, trademark, or copyright), but can derive from the assembly of data, instructions, recipes, algorithms and the like that cannot be touched, physically measured, or protected by the government. All of these intangible assets can be assigned a value in license agreements, wills, trusts, and other contracts to provide additional revenue streams depending on your business activity.

Torrey Pines Law Group, PC serves technology innovators with protecting intellectual property, obtaining regulatory approvals and clearances, and making deals and closing technology transactions throughout the U.S., including in major technology hubs such as San Diego, San Francisco, Palo Alto, San Jose, Silicon Valley, Boston, Cambridge, Chicago, Minneapolis, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Denver, Seattle, Portland, Boulder, Orlando, the Research Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill), the Mid-Atlantic (New Jersey, New York, Philadelphia, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC), Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Ann Arbor, and throughout Southern California in Los Angeles, Orange County, Irvine, Torrey Pines, Sorrento Valley, and La Jolla.

We have experience with international intellectual property, regulatory and transactional matters pending in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou China; Tokyo, Japan; Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt Germany; Tel Aviv Israel; Mumbai, Bengaluru, and New Delhi India; London and Edinburgh United Kingdom; Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary and Montreal Canada; Dublin, Ireland; Cape Town, South Africa; Mexico City and Tijuana Mexico; Brussels, Belgium; Copenhagen, Denmark; Paris, France; Madrid and Barcelona Spain; Moscow, Russia; Santiago, Chile; Montevideo, Uruguay; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro Brazil; Seoul, South Korea; Taipei, Taiwan; Hong Kong; Hanoi, Vietnam; Bangkok, Thailand; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Milan, Italy; Singapore; Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide Australia; Auckland, New Zealand; Oslo, Norway; Stockholm, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland; Kiev, Ukraine; Budapest, Hungary; Vienna, Austria; Prague, Czechia; Geneva and Lausanne Switzerland; Bahrain; Doha, Qatar; Abu Dhabi and Dubai UAE; and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.