SBIR Changes + Crowdfunding

Transcription

1 Los Angeles Section Enterprise Program SBIR Changes + Crowdfunding Dennis Wonica, Ph. D. LaserLight Networks Inc. Voice Mail: [email protected]

2 SEC SHORT TITLE This division may be cited as the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011 SBIR PROGRAM CHANGES 12 DEC 2011

3 Highlights Extension of Program Increased % of total extramural budget Increased award amounts for Phase 1 & 2 Shorter decision times to awards Bypass Phase 1, go directly to Phase 2 Small Business Concern (SBC) majority owned (>50%) by following entities allowed to bid on Program: VC = Venture Capital HF = Hedge Fund PE = Private Equity No Foreign partners/investors New Commercialization Programs New standards for Commercialization success

4 Some Numbers 6 Year Extension GFY SBIR (%) SBIR Pilot Tax* (%) STTR (%) [0 Tax] Extramural Budget *Administration, oversight & contract processing cost allowance to agency ALL OTHER AGENCIES NIH + NSF SBIR STTR SBIR/STTR Phase 1 $150K $150K $150K Phase 2 $1M $1M $1M Award adjustment allowed 50% 50% 50% Inflation adjustment allowed YES YES YES Funding Decision 90 days 90 days 1 Year

5 Changes in Phase 1/2 PHASE CHANGES SBIR STTR Receive Phase 1, eligible for Phase 2 from another Agency Agency allowed to use invitation only process for Phase 2 Additional Phase 2 allowed for same project Award Phase 2 without Phase 1 Phase 3 sole source to greatest extent possible YES, either SBIR or STRR NO YES YES for NIH, DoD, DoEd YES YES, either STTR or SBIR NO YES NO YES

6 External Investors with Majority Ownership of SBC (= VC/HF/PE) SBC allowed to bid on Program Rationale Induce additional funding Contribute to Agency mission Demonstrate need for public research Fulfill capital needs for added financing Extent of benefit to venture-backed companies and eligibility for SBIR determined by SBA rule-making process Reauthorization requires SBA to issue: Proposed regulations within 120 days Final regulations within 1 year Directives in 180 days

7 VC/PE/HF Participation Participation in SBIR Agency No VC/PE/HF participation in STTR Max Permissible Amount of Total Funds Available NIH, NSF, DoE 25% DoD and all others 15% SBC must register with SBA on date it submits application for award No majority ownership or control by large or foreign firms Agencies may not use external investment as criterion for award

8 Reality Check: Award Amounts Conversion Rate SBIR Program Range (K$) Phase 1 Phase 2 Total Phase 3 16% 50% 8% 55% Regular Award $150 $1,000 $1,150 - Add 50% $225 $1,500 $1,725 - Second Phase 2 $1,000 $2,725 Possible High Source: Testimony of Ms. Linda Oliver, Acting Dir., Off. of Small Bus. Programs; Off. of Under Sec. of Def. (AT&L) before House Subcommittee on Terrorism, Unconventional Threats, and Capabilities, Sep 29, 2010 Questionable Compare to Avg. Investment = $338.4K (Source: Center for Venture Research) 3% Get Funded (Source: (AngelSoft)) 2012 Dennis Wonica LaserLight Networks Inc.

9 MISC SBC may, on either SBIR or STTR: Subcontract Fed Lab or FFRDC Enter into CRADA with Fed lab and still get SBIR/STTR SBC must perform majority of work SBIR or STTR awardee may get assistance for Commercialization for both Phase 1 & Phase 2: Use Agency provided services/vendor OR Purchase services on own for up to $5,000/year in addition to amount of award More reporting by everyone: SBA, Agencies, SBCs, GAO, IG, NRC, Comptroller General, et al Certifications on eligibility Oversight, fraud, abuse, etc. Commercialization

10 NIH Only Create Phase 0 Proof of Concept Partnership Program under STTR Program Accelerate creation of SBCs and commercialization of research innovations Spend $5M Grants $1M/year for 3 years to qualifying institution = university or research institution $100K per individual proposal Work: market-focused project management oversight process; include technical validations, market research, clarifying IP rights, position and strategy, and investigating commercial or business opportunities Not for basic research, equip. or supplies evaluate commercial potential of existing discoveries, including proof of concept research or prototype development; activities that contribute to determining project s commercialization path

11 Commercialization Programs DoD Commercialization Readiness Program No longer a Pilot Program SecDef to set goals for transition of Phase 3 into subcontracting plans + offer incentives to PMs and Primes Primes to report number + $$ amounts of contracts for Phase 3 Set goal to increase Phase 2 SBIR/STTR contracts that lead to tech transition into programs of record or fielded systems Generally $100M programs Civilian Agencies may create Commercialization Pilot Program similar to DoD Program until 2017 Use 10% of total funds for: Awards for tech dev, testing, evaluation, and commercialization Assistance for SBIR and STTR Phase II technologies Support progress of R&D and commercialization conducted under SBIR or STTR programs to Phase 3 Max award amount < 3 x Phase 2 award amount

12 Commercialization Success Each Agency head shall establish: System to measure success + minimum performance standard of SBCs with respect to receipt of Phase 2 SBIR/STTR awards for projects that receive Phase 1 SBIR or STTR awards; and similarly for Phase 3 awards Evaluate each FY whether each small business concern that received Phase 1/2 SBIR/STTR award meets min performance standard If Agency head determines SBC fails to meet min standard then SBC may not participate in Phase 1/2 of that agency for 1 year

13 Government Definition of Commercialization Commercialization means process of developing products, processes, technologies, or services; and production & delivery (whether by originating party or by others) of products, processes, technologies, or services for sale to or use by Federal Government or commercial market Agreed, but Note: No definition of Success Useful metric: Return on Investment

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15 CROWDFUNDING

16 Crowdfunding Crowdfunding: raise small donated $$ amounts from large number of individuals Most private companies offer rewards in return Presently no web based crowdfunding site may offer equity based financial investments Kickstarter, Rockethub, FundaGeek = Crowdfunding sites LinkedIn, Facebook = Social Sites

17 Kickstarter Launched in stats Launched Projects: 27,086 Successful Projects: 11,836 Dollars Pledged: $99 M Rewards Selected: 1,150,461 Total Visitors: 30,590,342 Project Success Rate: 46% Top 3 in order Pledged Successful Projects FILM $32.4M 3,284 Oculus Surveillance & Telepresence Net book Robot project looking for $15,000 in pledges by Jan 31 $30 = T-Shirt $225 = full robot kit, you provide net book $420 = deluxe wood robot with headlight, T-shirt, software MUSIC $19.8M 3,653 DESIGN $9.2M 319

18 SEC Since 1933 Securities & Exchange Commission limits private companies to: < 500 shareholders Private Equity investments to total of 35 Nonaccredited Investors Accredited Investor: net worth of $1M and/or annual income exceeding $200K in each of 2 most recent years or joint income with spouse > $300K Intermediaries such as web sites must register with SEC as a broker-dealer to accept transaction based compensation in sale of securities

19 Proposed Amendment to SEC Rules New Congressional Bill Allows unlimited number of non-accredited investors Households >$50K Accredited

20 Crowdfunding According to Congress Start-Ups could advertise & sell securities + stock through networking type web sites Not signed into law; favored by President + Congress Main Points House (H.R. 2930) Senate (S. 1791) Use of Social Media Sites Facebook, LinkedIn, etc Use of Intermediary Sites Kickstarter, et al Investment Amount for Individual Total Cap per Company State Involvement Yes Yes No Yes $10K OR 10% of annual income Up to $1K/year per company $1M per year OR $2M per year with audited financial statements Fed law preempts State law, No registration requirement $1M per year Registration in State of organization allowed or State with >50% issuance

21 Congress Version Current Crowdfunding Discussion Topics PROS Non-equity investment Market Research: customer base, marketing message, product features Direct Marketing thru PR, word of mouth, testimonials Pre-Sales Sales Increased base of investors CONS Limited dollar amount from many investors; total $$s may not fit with product development; future Equity investors may not invest with non accredited investors Early adopters may be unreliable source of info, especially regarding product features Negative PR possible Ideas could be stolen Hyped product claim and/or guaranty; no protection for investor Cost of sales may increase Admin + legal costs increase Difficulty raising investment from Angels, VCs Legalities: safeguards to investors Directors & Officers liability insurance cost increase Minority stockholder rights under State laws