How do patents influence the value of stocks?
Patents constitute an asset that embodies the innovations taking place within a company. They are a proof that a company is really developing novel technologies. Furthermore, they provide a 20 years monopoly, helping the company to carve out a niche in a particular market segment. All this generally translates into better sales and higher earnings and thus impact on the stock price.

Why do we so rarely hear about patents in the mainstream financial news?
Patents and company that own them usually make the mainstream news when they are involved in litigation. However, such litigation are rare compare to the number of patents actually issued and they do not provide the information required to extract useful financial information about a company. In depth analysis of patent portfolios to extract useful information regarding the behavior of a stock requires an intimate knowledge of patents and how they influence the value of stocks. This is not something that the average person can easily do and has not been fully recognized by professional investors and advisors. The IP Investor strives to fulfill this need.

What are the companies comprising the IP30 index?
The 30 companies forming the index are the 30 publicly traded companies (on US stock exchanges) with the most patents. the current components are: IBM, Canon, Intel, Microsoft, Micron Technology,Hewlett Packard, Sony, Hitachi, GE, Infineon Technologies,Texas Instruments, Siemens, Nokia, Honda, Fujifilm, Sun microsystem, Cisco, Koninklijke Philips Electronics, Honeywell, Broadcom, Xerox, Eastman Kodak, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, 3M, Boeing, Motorola, E.I. Dupont de Nemours, Toyota, General Motors and TDK corporation.

What are the companies comprising the IP30BIOTECH index?
The 30 companies forming the index are the 30 publicly traded biotech companies (on US stock exchanges) with the most patents. the current components are:Amgen, Zymogenetics, Ganaera Corp., Genzyme, Xoma, IGI, Regeneron, Theravance, Invitrogen, Cytokinetics, Pharmacopeia, Nanogen, Celgene Corp., Affymax, Cell Therapeutics, Curagen, CV Therapeutics, Cell Genesys, Amylin Pharma, Qiagen, Sequenom, NPS Pharmaceuticals, Neurocrine, Biogen Idec, Curis, Onyx, Cerus Corp., Immtech Pharmaceuticals, QLT and Neose Technologies.