Rob Shambro

St. Louis, MO (USA)
Role(s):
Founder/Owner/Principal

Overlook Strategies

Find More Startups Startup
Location: St. Louis
Industry: Technology/Web
Year Founded: 2008
Number Employees: 1-10 people
Description: OverLook Strategies, Inc. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ‘The Intellectual Property Capital of the World” MISSION Become the defacto infrastructure, globally, for creating, marketing, policing and monetizing patents on the web, essentially building the eBay of Intellectual Property. Never before has an inventor been able to holistically market his/her patent using a marketplace that encompasses video, ecommerce and all the patent metadata all in a single location. The State of the Economy If there were a time for corporate stimulation, it would be now. In November 2008, the United States lost more than 530,000 jobs and thousands more are announced daily. The negative growth in U.S. GDP demonstrates that our economy is in a state of unhealthy contraction. Businesses have become slow to react to real market needs. Due to an overabundance of bureaucracy, many companies have not integrated new technology and innovation fast enough to improve competitive effectiveness. Thinkers all over the world have created ideas and patents that are waiting to be put into fruition. Many industry-changing innovations are seen as a threat to the current corporate structure. Large industry players, whose business the innovation would devastate, immediately purchase and bury the technology in hopes of ensuring dominance. We are throwing away government money to save businesses that should be left to perish. This is justified because the actions supposedly save jobs, but at what cost? The Unites States’ economy desperately needs stimulation, which should come from businesses built on the new ideas and inventions already created (or are on the in minds of our current generation), not from saving out of date processes. The younger generation has the knowledge base to carry this world through the tough times ahead. The problem is that they are caught in an old broken down system, they need a vehicle….A CHANCE! The Patent Process The patent process is like the old boys club. It is cluttered with heavy governmental documentation systems. Once a patent is issued the individual is left on their own to find a market. However, when a business creates a patent, it immediately employs that technology. We have divided new ideas into three categories, Internally Created and Used, Internally Created and Sold/Licensed and Externally Generated. Internally Generated and Used (IGU) patents are those that are created within an organization while working on a particular project or upon the direction of management to create a new device or system. These patents are heavily enforced and closely protected by the giant corporation and rarely are licensed to other organizations. Sometimes ideas and patents are created while companies are developing a project. The new technology has no current use and become property of technology transfer divisions, hence the name Internally Created and Sold (ICS). This is where a major opportunity exists for Overlook Strategies. The businesses want to monetize and recoup their investment. Externally Generated (EG) ideas and patents are created by a driven inventor. We define an inventor as a person who has the passion for a better life or simply has a creative mind. Rarely do the ideas of individual inventors make it through the patent process. The reasons for this are as follows: 1. Corporations often frown at outside inventions 2. The patent process is very expensive. 3. If one is lucky to get a patent, enforcing and monetization is difficult. The Company Overlook Strategies was formed to create a vehicle for the collaboration and monetization of intellectual property that will lead to the overall global stimulation of commerce in the marketplace. A seasoned management team has agreed, after collaborative thinking with contacts from around the industry, that the time is right to develop a much-needed bridge to fill the “GAP in INNOVATION”. The bridge is a system that is user friendly and works for all parties involved. Patents are not created to market the idea! Overlook is building a revolutionary marketing machine for ideas and patents. Inventors will be able to create a holistic presentation, including up to a video presentation, around their idea. They will be able to input every aspect of their patent or idea, such as drawings, claims, pictures, press releases, inventor biography, etc. All the information will go into a carefully tagged and searchable database. By creating business relationships with the Fortune 1000 and small business, Overlook Strategies will ensure that investment dollars can meet innovation in a very friendly way. The networking service will be offered at no charge to the inventor, as Overlook plans to build up the largest database of “for sale” intellectual property in the world. We intend to form deep partnerships with the 17,000 intellectual property attorneys around the United States and the 100’s of inventor associations around the world. We want to make it easy for someone to come up with an idea, search to check if it is patentable, hire a an attorney or file the patent themselves, then market and monetize the patent on our site. Overlook is also creating a Patent Patrol application that will give inventors peace of mind, by conducting daily internet and publication searches looking for patent infringers. Not only will Overlook be working with the External Inventors, we are actively building relationships with universities and research institutions. These organizations have patents that have been stuck behind technology transfer websites, but few people know how to access this information. Many of these inventions have had tens of millions of dollars invested in them. Overlook will be working with these organizations directly to help formulate a plan using the Overlook Toolset, which will help monetize the intellectual property. By nurturing these relationships, Overlook plans position itself as the development company of choice for actively marketing and developing business plans around the invention. Currently Overlook is seeking an ideal URL for its website. It has several options it is considering at this time. In mean time the schematics for the database, product offerings and the Patent Patrol application are being drawn up. The company formed as a Delaware C corporation December 5, 2008 and is seeking $1.5M in startup financing. Strategic Partners Company is being incubated by the 700 lawyer firm, Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosethal LLP. Discussions are being held with many of the top universities around the country. The timing is perfect for this opportunity as partners will not be the issue in building the business. The Management Team Rob Shambro, Founder SAVVIS founder, StreamSearch founder, Infinium Labs founder, Solar Night Industries founder, Greedy Genius founder Kevin Yarbrough, Chief Executive Officer/Co-Founder SAVVIS, StreamSearch, Vista Wiz, CityNow New Media, Solar Night Industries, British Telecom, Verizon, SBC Mark Westlock, M.B.A., Chief Financial Officer MWes Investments, L.L.C., Pfizer Inc., CityNow New Media, United States Navy Tom Zimmermann, Chief Marketing Officer Zimmermann & Associates, CityNow New Media, StreamSearch Michael Lazzareschi, VP Business Development Gateway Construction, Quest Diagnostics, Verizon Wireless, CityNow New Media, Vista WIZ Suresh Mandava, Chief Technology Officer Hexagrid Computing, VistaWiz, MasterCard, IBM, Satyam The Products and Services Overlook Strategies will develop 5 primary products to support patent process from filing through the marketing process. Overlook plans to build up the largest database of “for sale” intellectual property in the world. Overlook will be working with the External Inventors, actively building relationships with businesses, universities and research institutions. These organizations have patents that have been stuck behind technology transfer websites, but few people know how to access this information. Overlook Strategies will create a forward cash flow by earning royalties for patents and licenses sold. Invention Toolkit - The starting point for monetizing intellectual property. • Provides a patent search to insure the patent is not infringing upon another existing patent. • Patent Filing, Patent Licensing, and Patent Litigation via referred legal services. The company will receive a 7% fee of the patent process for each completed application. Inventors Lounge • Social Network for Innovators, Document Sharing, Video Game Console Whiteboard/Webcam for idea sharing and patent submission. Patent Patrol • A monthly fee based service in which Overlook Strategies will search the Web daily for possible patent infringers. If a potential infringement has occurred, Overlook will provide the subscriber with recommendation for legal counsel to further pursue the subscriber’s options. Patent Marketplace • Webpage and Video presentation of licensable patent Invention Services. • Inventors will be able to create a holistic and professional presentation, including a video presentation, representing their idea. They will be able to input every aspect of their patent or idea, such as drawings, claims, pictures, press releases, inventor biography, etc. All information will go into a carefully tagged and searchable database. Overlook Strategies will strive to ensure that investment dollars can meet innovation in a very friendly way. Once a patent is sold to a business, Overlook Strategies will collect subsequent royalties from all sources. Milestones • December 5, 2008 – Company Founded • February 1, 2009 Formalized Deal with St. Louis Law Firm • February 10, 2009 Initial Website Launched • February 15, 2009 - $1.5M Funding Closed • March 1, 2009 St. Louis Offices Opened • March 15, 2009 Idea Submission Launched • August 1, 2009 Patent Market Place Launched • December 1, 2009 Patent Patrol Desktop Application Launched Marketing Strategy • Tradeshows • Intellectual Property Attorney Association • University Technology Transfer Departments • Agencies and Research Institutions • Viral Web Marketing • Invention Contests • USPTO Financing The company is seeking 1.5M in financing. The instrument is structured as a convertible debenture that converts 3x to Series A terms and pricing. The company is open to simply doing an equity financing and even accelerating its growth timeline by taking additional financing. The funds will be used to establish offices and personnel, develop the software technologies and launch a global marketing campaign to build the database of offerings. Future Possibilities • Slotting Fees • Subscription based fees for access to database • Direct relationship with USPTO as extension of patent process • Inclusion into research grants • Global patent policy enforcement and reorganization • Use of video archive to create television shows and channel • Video database becomes protected government archive