Video Game Creator Gets Creative With IP Licensing - Well Played!
Situation
A leading video game creator wanted to expand their business by leveraging their fan-favorite titles in creative new ways. Their strategy was to license out their intellectual property (IP), from game music to brands to characters, for a multitude of uses.
Challenge – Tracking Licensees, Invoices, and Collections
Licensing out their IP demanded an organized system for keeping track of deals, working with licensees, and ensuring strong financial processes. Anticipating complex licensing deals across multiple licensees, they realized that keeping track of invoices and collections using spreadsheets and emails could quickly become unmanageable. Without the right technology in place, it would be difficult to verify royalty reporting by licensees and recoup inaccurate or missed payments. They needed software that integrated with their existing technology stack and that could provide reporting and analytics on product trends in order to make informed decisions to optimize deal structures, product sets, and licensee performance.
Solution – FADEL IPM Suite® Licensing Edition
The video game creator selected FADEL IPM Suite® Licensing Edition for its ability to streamline and automate rights and royalty management for their corporate initiative to license out valuable IP in new and innovative ways. IPM Suite streamlines their financial transactions by automatically and accurately calculating royalty revenue and generating statements for collections. Invoice information seamlessly flows into their ERP system and Oracle E-Business Suite for Accounts Receivables and General Ledger recognition.
“With IPM Suite, the company gains automatic invoice creation. Typing up invoices is a thing of the past and the integration with cash management not only provides for recoupment of invoices but also gives the management team full visibility into the cash flow of the business.” – Director of Applications & Operations
By clearly tracking if and when invoice payments are made within IPM Suite, the IP licensing team can check a licensee’s status, identify violations, pinpoint areas of improvement in their contracts when they come up for renewal, and better collaborate with legal to prevent compliance issues and penalties down the line.
Results – New Revenue Streams, Integrated Processes
With IPM Suite’s seamless integration into their existing systems, the video game creator was able to strengthen financial processes, standardize on future deal terms, and most importantly optimize license revenue for their IP. The company uses the system’s analytics and trending data to inform strategic decisions over time, such as whether royalty rates seem too high or too low, whether a market segment might be prime to go after, whether new licensees would be ideal to target, and whether a deal can be better negotiated for a higher return.
“A significant benefit of IPM Suite is that it helped us bring together different stakeholders and streamline our integrated process. With IPM Suite we gain a consistent and efficient framework for faster growth.” – Director of Applications & Operations
By licensing their IP out across movies, themed restaurants, live events, and promotional packaging, the video game creator has not only generated new revenue streams, they have expanded their marketing reach. Their digital assets have appeared on everything from cereal boxes to lottery tickets to search engines, transforming their brand from a video game creator into a global entertainment innovator.
