Leading Technology Integrator Trusts Martensen IP to Help it Navigate Government Rules and Raise its Valuation

Polaris Alpha provides core technologies to the U.S. government for addressing global security threats. It leverages the deep subject matter expertise of over 1,200 technical experts and a portfolio of capabilities to help agencies like the Department of Defense meet their toughest challenges.

Polaris Alpha came to Martensen IP for assistance in a situation where the company was being subtly pressured by the government to relinquish rights to particular intellectual property in order to award a contract—something the government is not supposed to do. Ultimately, it turned out the contracting officer involved was trying to rectify a difficult situation in which unauthorized use of the software was already underway.

Finding a Win-Win for Polaris Alpha and a Contracting Officer

In researching the situation, we learned that the “single-seat” license Polaris Alpha had granted the government under an SBIR grant to test drive a new application was instead being treated as an “enterprise” license based on confusion about its original funding. When the government’s contracting officer learned of this, she attempted to secure an enterprise license but implied the government would stop using the software (eliminating any support services) if an agreement couldn’t be reached.

To resolve the issue, our team went to work educating both Polaris Alpha and the contracting officer on the rules governing this type of scenario. By educating both parties we shifted the balance of power in the client’s favor and gave them the leverage they needed to stand their ground with respect to certain government agencies.

The securing of both Polaris Alpha’s IP and a long-term relationship with the government raised the organization’s valuation and attractiveness, and it was ultimately acquired by a $4 billion company. As a footnote to this engagement, Martensen IP was subsequently hired by the acquirer to help that company manage its IP portfolio and increase its valuation.