IP Strategy Comes of Age: Best Strategy Book of 2009 Is About Intellectual Property

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - December 14, 2009) - The best business strategy book of 2009 is about intellectual property strategy, according to the Winter 2009 issue of Strategy+Business magazine, signaling recognition that sound business strategy must now involve the advanced management of IP.

The magazine named The Invisible Edge: Taking Your Strategy to the Next Level Using Intellectual Property (Portfolio, 2009), by Mark Blaxill and Ralph Eckardt as the best strategy book. (Read the Strategy+Business article at http://www.strategy-business.com/article/09407c?rssid=all_updates&gko=68863.)

"It's heartening, and good for the business world, that a book on IP has been named as 2009's best strategy book. Today, sustainable advantage comes not from physical assets or scale, as those can be re-created, bought or rented, but from the intangibles that make a product, service or process truly differentiated and better. If those intangibles aren't safeguarded with IP protection, they can be copied, and advantage is jeopardized or lost. Yet, for too long, leaders have overlooked IP management as a key dimension of competitive strategy. This is a wakeup call: IP strategy often makes the difference between success and failure," said Kevin Rivette, author of Rembrandts in the Attic. He is a partner, with Invisible Edge co-authors Blaxill and Eckardt, at 3LP Advisors, an intellectual property advisory firm based in Boston.

Strategy+Business said, "The Invisible Edge isn't merely about taking strategy to the next level. Intellectual property is central to the formulation and execution of a successful strategy at any level. And by the end of the book, it is hard to imagine a successful strategy that isn't solidly backed up by the protection of intellectual property."

The Invisible Edge argues that the innovations that a company owns and controls are the source of extraordinary profits over the long term -- and that IP is what allows the company to possess, protect and defend those innovations, which differentiate processes, products and services and enable the company to charge premiums for them. Blaxill and Eckardt show business leaders how to turn an invisible asset into an unbeatable edge -- and make the case that IP is the only source of sustainable advantage and the key to dominance in the 21st Century. The book also points out that IP resources can be a country's -- particularly the U.S.'s -- greatest strategic reserve, and legislators must take care not to squander it inadvertently with misguided decisions and reforms.

CIO Insight, http://www.cioinsight.com/c/a/Books/The-Best-ITBusiness-Books-of-2009-635238/, has also named The Invisible Edge as one of the best IT-Business Books of 2009.

About The Invisible Edge Authors

Mark Blaxill and Ralph Eckardt are managing partners of 3LP Advisors, an advisory firm focused on intellectual property transactions. Blaxill is a former senior vice president of The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and was head of its Strategy Practice Initiative. Eckardt is the former head of BCG's Intellectual Property Strategy practice and led the development of the IP visualization software featured in The Invisible Edge and on its Website, www.the-invisible-edge.com. They live in Boston.

Contact Information: Contact: Itay Engelman Sommerfield Communications (212) 255-8386 itay@sommerfield.com