Licensing Executives Society International

What Licensing Executives Society International does

Licensing Executives Society International (LESI) is a non-profit professional membership society founded in 1973 and headquartered at 238 Main Street, Rutherglen, Glasgow, UK, operating as the umbrella federation for 33 national and regional Licensing Executives Society (LES) member societies spanning the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa. Its core function is to serve IP licensing, technology transfer, and IP management professionals - drawn from legal, industry, and academia - by providing networking, knowledge sharing, and professional development across the full IP lifecycle from innovation through R&D, protection, licensing, valuation, transfer, monetization, and enforcement.

LESI's product surface includes individual and organizational membership (with a new Global IP Owner Membership pilot offering enterprise pricing), the Les Nouvelles quarterly journal, LES Global News, Business Briefings, Royalty Rate Surveys, the Certified Licensing Professional (CLP) credential, the annual international conference (2026 in Nara, Japan; 2027 in Orlando, USA), the IMDM database event, a Thought Leadership Program with topical tracks on SEPs, MedTech, and data-in-IP, the LESI Leadership Academy, and community committees including the Young Members Congress (YMC) and Women In Licensing Alliance (WILA). Distribution is federated: the 33 national societies serve as primary member-acquisition and service-delivery channels, supplemented by a self-serve online join portal and international events. Revenue is generated through recurring membership dues, conference and event registrations, publication subscriptions, and certification fees; pricing is not publicly disclosed.

LESI holds consultative and cooperative relationships with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the European Commission (on TTBER and UPC matters), the European Patent Office (EPO), the Unified Patent Court (UPC), and the USPTO, and conducts pro-bono activities with WIPO. Governance is member-driven through a Board of Directors and Board of Delegates, with volunteer leadership including a President (Jean-Christophe Troussel, transitioning in April 2026) and an Executive Director (Dana Colarulli). The organization has 11-50 employees and is not publicly traded; financial information is not publicly disclosed.

Name

Licensing Executives Society International

Legal name

Licensing Executives Society International

Website

https://lesi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Licensing Executives Society International is a non-profit professional membership society that serves as the umbrella federation for 33 national and regional LES societies, providing IP licensing and technology transfer professionals worldwide with networking, publications, certification, and events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Business Associations (813910), Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (54)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Standards-Essential Patents (SEP) & FRAND Advisory (BPAHAMAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Technical Committees, Working Groups & Expert Panels (BPADANAB)

Keywords

• Intellectual property licensing
• Professional society membership
• Technology transfer services
• IP professional certification
• Licensing education training

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Revenue generated from individual and organizational membership fees across 33 national and regional societies. The Global IP Owner Membership program offers organizations a single annual fee for employee memberships worldwide.
2. Publication Subscriptions: Les Nouvelles journal published quarterly for members. Non-member subscriptions available. The publication advances knowledge in licensing and protecting intellectual property.
3. Conference and Event Revenue: Annual conferences (LESI 2027 in Orlando, regional meetings) generate revenue through registration fees. Regional societies organize workshops and webinars.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Licensing Executives Society International (LESI) operates as a professional membership society that provides networking, knowledge sharing, publications, certification, and events for intellectual property and licensing professionals worldwide. It serves as an umbrella organization for 33 national and regional LES Member Societies, offering individual and organizational memberships, the CLP (Certified Licensing Professional) credential, the quarterly Les Nouvelles journal, annual conferences, and educational programs covering the full IP lifecycle from innovation through monetization and enforcement.

Product overview

LESI is a professional society for people interested in the licensing of technology and intellectual property, operating as a membership-based organization with a complex focus on the legal aspects and ideal business utilization of the entire lifecycle of IP. The organization's offerings include membership services providing access to a global network of IP professionals, publications (including Les Nouvelles quarterly journal, LES Global News, Business Briefings, and Royalty Rate Surveys), professional certification (CLP Certification), events (Annual Conference and IMDM), educational programs (Thought Leadership Program and Leadership Academy), and specialized committees (Young Members Congress, Women In Licensing Alliance). LESI serves as an umbrella organization for 33 national and regional member societies worldwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Les Nouvelles: The official journal of LESI, published quarterly to further the knowledge of society members in improving their skills, techniques and knowledge in licensing and protecting Intellectual Property.
• LES Global News
• Young Members Congress (YMC)
• Women In Licensing Alliance (WILA)
• Thought Leadership Program

Products and services

• LESI Membership
• Global IP Owner Membership Program
• Les Nouvelles
• Business Briefings
• Royalty Rate Surveys
• CLP Certification
• LESI Annual Conference
• IMDM

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLESI conducts pro-bono activities in cooperation with WIPO, supporting intellectual property development and education initiatives globally. The partnership focuses on providing professional resources and expertise to advance IP awareness and best practices.
• European CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLESI European Committee coordinates with the External Relations Committee to engage with European Commission on technology transfer policy matters including TTBER (Technology Transfer Block Exemption Regulation) and UPC (Unified Patent Court) developments.
• European Patent OfficecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLESI collaborates with the European Patent Office as part of its outreach strategy for professional organizations involved with licensing and technology transfer in the EMEA region.
• Unified Patent CourtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLESI engages with the UPC on licensing policy matters, organizing workshops and programs that address practices relevant to the Unified Patent Court system.
• USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLESI hosts fireside chats with USPTO leadership including Director John A. Squires on patent and trademark developments affecting American IP policy.
• 33 National and Regional SocietiescoreOthersLESI serves as an umbrella organization for 33 national and regional societies including LES USA & Canada, LES China, LES Japan, LES Germany, LES France, LES Britain & Ireland, LES Australia & New Zealand, LES Singapore, LES Korea, LES India, LES Philippines, and others covering Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• International Trademark Association (INTA): INTA is a global membership association of brand owners and trademark professionals; it parallels LESI as a dues-funded international professional society serving IP practitioners through conferences, publications, committees, and policy advocacy, with a comparably broad global chapter structure.
• MARQUES (The Association of European Trade Mark Owners): MARQUES is a membership association for brand and trade mark professionals in Europe; it competes with LESI's European societies for IP practitioner memberships, conferences, and brand-protection committee work.
• Intellectual Asset Management (IAM): IAM is a media and events business serving the IP licensing and strategy community, with the IAM Patent 1000, conferences, and Stratcraft that overlap with LESI's licensing publications, conferences, and CLP-style recognition programs.
• Patent and Trademark Office Society (PTOS): PTOS is a US-based professional society for IP practitioners, including patent and trademark examiners and attorneys; it parallels LESI USA & Canada with memberships, events, and publications serving similar US IP professionals.
• Association Internationale pour la Protection de la Propriété Intellectuelle (AIPPI): AIPPI is a worldwide non-profit association of IP professionals with national and regional groups, focused on IP law and policy; it directly competes with LESI for IP practitioner memberships, conference attendance, and committee participation across jurisdictions.
• LES USA & Canada: LES USA & Canada is the largest national LES society under the LESI umbrella and operates as a peer organization with its own conferences, publications, and committees for IP licensing professionals in North America.

Others

• European Patent Office (EPO): EPO is a strategic partner of LESI and a co-producer of IP education and standards; while not a membership society, it is a direct collaborator on professional training and patent-licensing programs targeting the EMEA IP community.
• World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO): WIPO is LESI's core pro-bono partner and convener of global IP policy; it engages the same IP professional audience through training, policy work, and international IP frameworks that LESI members care about.

Regional players

• International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI) Japan / Japan Patent Attorneys Association (JPAA): JPAA is Japan's national IP professional association and overlaps with LES Japan's activities in IP licensing education, events, and policy commentary for Japanese IP practitioners.

Emerging players

• Knowledge Ecology International (KEI): KEI is a non-profit that works on IP policy including access to medicines, data, and SEPs, overlapping with LESI's Thought Leadership tracks on SEPs, MedTech, and Managing Data in IP.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/lesi_comms
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Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles24 records

Subsidiaries30 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Licensing Executives Society International