| Posted: January 5, 2009 |
Nanotechnology in 2009 - creative destruction or credit crunch? |
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(Nanowerk News) Tim Harper over at Cientifica has published a thought-provoking brief white paper "Nanotechnologies In 2009: Creative Destruction or Credit Crunch?" that looks at the effects of the current financial crisis on the world of nanotechnologies.
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He lists five issues which he sees as having a significant impact on nanotechnology in 2009:
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Technology Funding – expect to see things getting worse before they get better
Purchases of Worthless Intellectual Property
Academic Funding and Spinouts
CleanTech
Nanotechnology Applications
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Some notable quotes from the paper:
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"Given that the current liquidity crisis may last for up to
two years, and most firms don’t have two years cash in
the bank, I expect to see a growing number of fire sales and intellectual property
disposals among most emerging technologies. Secondary investors may have a very good
year buying distressed VC portfolios."
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"I expect pressure to mount for a shift from blue sky to
goal-oriented research as the year progresses. While
most funding programs are run on three- to five-year
cycles, nanotechnology research funding will come
under increasing scrutiny from funding agencies that in
turn will be under pressure to develop better value for
money."
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"As companies drew down mountains of cheap debt of the past decade to finance growth,
2009 will see falling share prices exacerbating to struggle to refinance existing bonds and
loans. I expect to see a couple more high profile nanotechnology failures this year,
probably among the large number of illiquid public companies focussing on materials."
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