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Through the "New business from research ideas" application process, Business Finland funds projects in which a project team is preparing to commercialize a research idea. Business Finland funding will constitute 70% of the eligible costs.
The research project
- supports the development of the idea and
- involves preparations to commercialize it as a new business.
Requirements for the project
- Commercialization preparations account for a significant share of the project budget, at least ≥ 40% at every stage of the project.
- The new business forming the goal of the project's commercialization preparations must be significant in scope.
- The application must include an assessment of the planned business's scope.
- The purpose of commercialization preparations is to investigate potential ways of benefiting from the research results and identifying the most lucrative way forward, either in the form of a new company or as a new business conducted by an existing company. A range of alternative commercialization opportunities must be investigated for each project.
- Preparations to launch a new business by a single, new company cannot be the direct goal of such a project.
- The commercialization plan and resources must be realistic and plausible. The application must describe the expertise and previous references of the persons responsible for commercialization.
- If one of the potential commercialization routes involves the founding of a new company, the composition of the new company's team must be described. The application must also describe the way in which the new company plans to ensure the commitment of its personnel and the expertise it requires.
- The applicant must have sufficient rights to use the background material and the resulting research results to commercialize the information and expertise in question.
- After the project, the research organization must be able to hand over the rights to the research results to the party in charge of commercialization.
If the applicant organization has its own assessment process for the commercialization of research ideas, the project must have been assessed and approved based on such a process. The process has authority to take part to funding negotiations.
It will also be considered an advantage if the project has already involved an analysis of and measures taken with respect to commercialization potential.
Examples of commercialization preparation measures eligible for funding
- level of technology investigation and innovation search
- determination of customer value
- investigation of competing solutions
- investigations concerning freedom of action and immaterial rights in the sector
- protection of immaterial rights (maintenance fees excluded), practical trials to verify the functionality of the commercialized idea (Proof of Concept)
- funding model investigationsbusiness model investigations
- costs of commercialization and entrepreneurship training
Application process
Please submit your application through Business Finland's online service by 11:59 pm on 19 September 2019 at the latest. European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) (only in Finnish) can also be applied for funding. The applicant is asked to mention the matter in the application.
Business Finland online service
Further information on "New business from research ideas" funding
