The practice of technology assessment involves examining short- and long-term effects (for example, societal, economic, ethical, legal) of the application of technology. Technology has been defined as science or knowledge applied for a specific purpose. Providing policy makers with information about policy alternatives is the goal of technology assessment.

As early as the 1960s, the term “technology assessment” was used in the United States to discuss such issues as supersonic transport, pollution, and the ethics of genetic screening.

Historically, technology assessment has been (and continues to be) a very broad field. Assessment of technology is not the only activity advocated or carried out. Topics related to technology assessment include diffusion of technology (and technology transfer), the factors that lead to rapid acceptance of new technologies, and the role of technology in society.

An increase in patent disputes in recent years has been attributed to increased competition in the global market and a shorter technology life-cycle, which has increased the risk of investing in technology development. In spite of the fact that many global companies have begun developing methodologies for identifying promising technologies and assessing them for decisions, the existing methodologies still have some limitations. New technologies are not being assessed post hoc, especially to determine whether the suggested technologies have proven successful. Currently, citation information, which accumulates over time, is used as a metric for assessing a patent’s quality in quantitative patent analysis; however, this information cannot be used to evaluate patents registered recently. By analyzing patents for promising technologies post-hoc, we propose a new technology assessment model that can replace citation information and positively influence technological development. Our process also includes collecting customer reviews on a technology in order to identify keywords that show what customers need, and determining how many keywords the new technology covers. As a final step, we use a portfolio (based on technology assessments derived from patent data) and a customer-based marketability assessment (based on review data) to visualize new technology characteristics.

An assessment of a technology can be used both by the owner and by a prospective buyer, as part of a monetization study or as a stand-alone study. Investing in a new technology can also require technology assessment studies from incubators and/or investors.

For Owners of the technology:

It is imperative that technology owners evaluate their technology portfolio thoroughly before selecting and implementing the technology. This includes evaluating the technology’s feasibility, potential and marketability, and ability to impact/disrupt the current market situation. Moreover, it can provide information about the competitive landscape if the technology is commercialized as well as identify potential licensees.

1. Corporates/MNCs: Patents/New technologies are important assets for a company and can be a high contributor for the company’s revenue/monetary advantage and thus, successful commercialization of the patent portfolio can give a company the much required market and competitive edge.
2. Start-ups/Technology Companies: Multiple start-ups are based on their disruptive technologies and thus commercialization of the patent portfolio covering the technology becomes crucial for their survival and growth.

For Buyers of technology:

A legal due diligence process is always conducted during the acquisition of a start-up/SME or their technology, or the investment in a new venture, to ensure that the target technology is a good fit. An assessment of the technology potential of an acquisition target also helps determine whether it is the best choice.

Incubators/Consultants:

For entities facilitating business development of SMEs or funding for start-ups, it becomes necessary to have a portfolio of solid technologies. Thus, technology assessment studies are very helpful in deciding which technologies should be moved to the market and which of those can be shelved. Detailed technology assessment reports can also be used to demonstrate the potential and capabilities to a prospective investor or buyer.

At IIPRD, our technology assessment studies empower our clients to make informed decisions on introducing a new technology. Our study covers both technical as well as economic aspects of a product or technology. IIPRD provides technology assessment services where the team regularly analyzes pros and cons of a proposed technology by  processing data in a variety of ways and present the output in several custom report formats to suit a diversity of purposes. The information gathered as part of the technical/technology assessment is usually exacted from several paid and free databases including journals, white papers, technical specifications, product brochures, newsletters, videos, industry reports, journals, and market data. Post collection of required information and data from primary as well secondary sources, the data is analysed so as to share the assessment wrt the technology in context and its commercial relevancy.

IIPRD prepares Technology Assessment/Evaluation Reports (TER) that are presented in a manner that answers all key questions that investors and companies might have about a given technology in context.

You can contact us at [email protected] for a thorough technology assessment and guidance through the process of obtaining a patent or otherwise if you plan to invest in/commercialize a new technology/product.