open business Models patterns 113 GlaxoSmithKline’s Patent Pools The inside-out approach to open innova- tion ordinarily focuses on monetizing unused internal assets, primarily patents and technol- ogy. In the case of GlaxoSmithKline’s “patent pool” research strategy, though, the motivation was slightly diΩerent. The company’s goal was to make drugs more accessible in the world’s poorest countries and to facilitate research into understudied diseases. One way to achieve this was to place intellectual property rights relevant to developing drugs for such diseases into a patent pool open to exploration by other researchers. Since pharmaceutical companies focus mainly on developing blockbuster drugs, intellectual property related to less-studied diseases often lies idle. Patent pools aggregate intellectual property from diΩerent rights- holders and makes it more accessible. This helps prevent R&D advances from being blocked by a single rights-holder. ip for underserved diseases acquisition retention outside researchers patent pools license fees Inside-Out Unused internal ideas, R&D, and intellectual property related to diseases in poor nations have substantial value when “pooled” bmgen_final.indd 113 6/15/10 5:38 PM