Com Laude, the global leader in corporate domain name management, and iaidō, the modular platform launched in partnership with award-winning global IP consultancy Stobbs, today announced a partnership that will deliver the first-of-its-kind platform for managing global trademark and domain name portfolios. Intangible assets account for 52% of value for all worldwide PLCs, yet these are often not afforded the protection they deserve. Designed to enhance value and mitigate risk, the partnership will deliver enhanced domain-specific features to the iaidō product, providing in-house brand specialists with real-time data analytics that compares local consumer purchasing patterns with levels of IP protection on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction basis. The iaidō platform, developed with several high-profile development partners, will be launched at the INTA Annual Meeting in Washington DC between 30 April and 4 May 2022.
Maintaining oversight of many hundreds of brands and thousands of domain and trademark registrations across multiple jurisdictions is challenging. Consequently, some of the world’s largest brands are often required to compromise in terms of selecting those brands and locations that are prioritised for auditing purposes. Once configured to the client’s needs, the iaidō platform automates both domain and trademark alignment, collecting and analysing vulnerability, sales, protection strategy, comparable rights and cost comparison data. By highlighting protection vulnerabilities and calculating the associated costs, iaidō provides a strategic cost/benefit analysis across domain and trademark portfolios, on a global basis.
To drive the adoption of this unique and strategic platform, Com Laude has appointed Alex Rushent as European Business Development Manager. Having worked in the IP sector for nearly 20 years, Alex will commence a dual-role with iaidō as Sales and Partnerships Director. In his previous role, Alex was Brands Consultant at London based law firm Lewis Silkin, where he was responsible for the benchmarking and sourcing of transformational ‘LegalTech’ solutions to achieve greater internal efficiency and expand the scope of solutions provided to clients.
Pieter van den Buick, Global Director of Intellectual Property at Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV states that he is “Excited to see the innovation behind iaidō that we at ABInBev jointly pioneered, extended into the domain name world. In many ways, a naturally progression to contend with the large and complex domain name portfolio’s that are so key to many global organisations. This tool will make in-house brand specialists excited about being responsible for domain name management again.”
Lewis Whiting, Founder at iaidō adds, “The shape of business is increasingly IP-rich, yet international trademark and domain portfolios often don’t receive the care and attention they need to stay aligned with the commercial demands owing to the labour-intensive nature of portfolio management across jurisdictions. Through this partnership, Com Laude and iaidō will redefine domain name and brand strategies, by using iaidō’s automated legal business intelligence approach and Com Laude’s advanced approach to corporate domain name management to de-risk and provide real-time assessment of value.”
Commenting on the partnership, Glenn Hayward, CEO, Com Laude, said: “Domains and trademarks go hand in hand, and there are similar issues that we see across the portfolio management of both asset classes. We’re proud to be able to provide our API to an already powerful tool, which we see providing incredible value to global brands that want to ensure they are mitigating risks and getting the most benefit from their intangible assets.”