Acquisition and Monetization of Wireless Portfolio

The Situation

The Gores Group, a private equity company with diverse technology holdings, was considering acquiring the patent assets of Powerwave Technologies, which was going through bankruptcy. The portfolio consisted of approximately 1,400 US and foreign patents and patent applications in wireless infrastructure. Gores hired Mintz to conduct diligence on the portfolio prior to its acquisition and subsequently asked the firm to develop and execute a monetization strategy after Gores acquired the patents.  

The Approach

The firm conducted substantial diligence in a compressed timeframe to assess the quality of the portfolio and provided counsel pertaining to Gores’s bid for the assets. Upon acquisition of the portfolio, Gores engaged Mintz to monetize the portfolio. Our team handled the matter from soup to nuts, including providing services often handled by consultants and other service providers. We served Gores as a single provider throughout the process, simplifying their oversight responsibilities and creating a smooth process and streamlined communications. Our team was responsible for:

• Mining the portfolio;
• Identifying value drivers;
• Creating evidence of use charts for the value drivers;
• Assessing the market opportunity;
• Providing counsel on the purchase of assets out of bankruptcy;
• Identifying potential licensing targets and potential buyers;
• Conducting a sale process;
• Negotiating a patent purchase agreement; and
• Closing the transaction.

The Outcome

The sale closed less than 15 months after diligence began and less than 18 months from the bankruptcy estate purchase, returning substantial value for the client.