Draper Venture Network Partners With TiVo

By Amit Chowdhry • Feb 17, 2020
  • The Draper Venture Network (DVN) — which is an alliance of independent VC firms with over 900 collective portfolio companies — announced it launched Gold Star with TiVo as its first corporate partner

The Draper Venture Network (DVN) — which is an alliance of independent VC firms with over 900 collective portfolio companies — announced it launched a program called Gold Star to help tech startups effectively navigate partnership and investment opportunities with established companies. And one of the first corporate partners in its Gold Star program will be TiVo, which is a company with an unrivaled legacy of innovation in entertainment and digital technology.

By working with TiVo, it will give participating tech startups unique strategic insights for commercializing their intellectual property. Many startups and their investors often see IP as a defense strategy and TiVo is prepared to help emerging tech companies understand how to proactively capitalize on the untapped value of their IP.

“The typical startup’s approach to IP is to have an IP lawyer file patents and that’s about it,” said Tim Draper, Founder at Draper Associates/DFJ/Draper University. “But now we want our companies to begin profiting from their IP. TiVo has world-class expertise in this field, plus an A-list customer base in media and tech, all of which can be so valuable to our early-stage startups.”

DVN and TiVo are going to work on a range of initiatives to highlight and cultivate an ecosystem of radical innovation in the rapidly evolving media and entertainment industry. And TiVo will advise, support, and partner with groundbreaking startups from Draper Network’s portfolios and beyond, representing sectors such as virtual & augmented reality, blockchain, artificial intelligence, 5G, and quantum computing. 

“TiVo is committed to supporting the next generation of early-stage startups in unleashing the full potential of the entertainment experience for consumers,” added Arvin Patel, EVP & CIPO at TiVo. “We are honored to be included in the DVN’s Gold Star program. We see this as an opportunity to partner with groundbreaking tech startups, in a collaborative ‘think tank’-style environment, to create a more vibrant ecosystem for entertainment technology.”

Dave Shull, President & CEO at TiVo, pointed out that the opportunity to share TiVo’s IP expertise with DVN’s roster of technology startups was “too good to miss.”

“We’re all about bringing entertainment together for consumers, wherever they want it, and the best way to do that is by partnering with other great minds in the industry to share expertise and accelerate innovation,” explained Shull.