Shakespeare’s famous phrase “What’s in a name?” comes to mind in the wake of
Brown University’s multiple name changes for its entrepreneurial think tank
– from Brown Venture Forum, to Brown Enterprise Forum, to the Brown Forum for
Enterprise.
The convoluted story brings another Shakespearean insight to mind: “Let’s
kill all the lawyers.”
The catalyst for the final name switch: The Massachusetts Institute for Technology
recently sent a legal letter to Brown, insisting that it stop using “Enterprise
Forum” because it too closely resembled MIT’s venture group, the MIT Enterprise
Forum, which was founded in 1978.
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The Brown Forum for Enterprise, operated under the august auspices of Providence’s
Ivy League school, is a nonprofit entity that brings together business builders,
scientists, venture capitalists, management consultants, existing companies
and others to foster innovative economic activity throughout the state.
Founded in 1984, during the high-tech mania of the 1980s, the Brown organization’s
original name was Venture Forum. This fall, the Venture Forum changed its name
to Brown Enterprise Forum, to reflect a broadened agenda that encourages involvement
from all types of businesspeople, not just high-tech impresarios. However, before
the glossy new stationery could even come back from the printer, the name was
changed yet again, to its current incarnation.
“We first changed the name from Venture Forum to reflect the fact that enterprise
isn’t just technology,” said Dr. Charles F.M. Kingdon, associate vice president
for technology partnerships at Brown and director of the Brown Forum for Enterprise.
“Also, the word ‘venture’ tends to create the impression that the only concern
is venture capital. The success of the forum will be dictated by truly involving
all players in the state. We’re a social enterprise that gives people the chance
to share knowledge for the betterment of the community.”
Kingdon, an Englishman with a clipped “Oxbridge” accent, holds a doctorate
in biochemistry. He has extensive experience in scientific research and occupied
a high-level policy-making position under former British Prime Minister Margaret
Thatcher.
When asked about MIT’s preemptive action, Kingdon refused comment. “Let’s
just say we wanted to make sure we had a clear identity,” he said.
MIT spokesperson Greg Wymer explained that the letter was sent to Brown in
September, when the MIT forum discovered that its counterpart was changing its
name and throwing a “kickoff” event to celebrate.
“That’s what precipitated our action,” he said. “MIT Enterprise Forum is a
registered trademark, and that was the main reason why we were concerned. We
wanted to protect our trademark.” He said Brown forestalled legal action because
it quickly relented before the party even took place.
Wymer said the two think tanks share a common mission and modus operandi and
aren’t rivals in any sense. “It’s not a Coke and Pepsi sort of thing, where
we compete for the same business,” Wymer said. “As with them, anybody interested
in startups come to us for help.”
Wymer noted that the MIT forum operates 23 chapters throughout the United
States, Canada, Taiwan, Israel and Japan. “We can point to a lot of success
stories along Route 128 that trace their genesis to us,” he said.
Michael McMahon, executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Development
Corporation, plays a supporting role in the Brown Forum for Enterprise. He said
Brown’s forum boasts real-world success similar to that of MIT’s forum.
“The forum encourages the transfer of technology out of the labs at Brown
and into real companies in Rhode Island,” McMahon said. “It has generated a
lot of economic activity and jobs, but now Brown is making a bigger effort than
ever to lend its intellectual capital to the community.”
Indeed, public-private “incubators” that cater to fledgling businesses are
sprouting up around the country. They’re not a new concept, but they’re increasingly
embraced by local officials as a way to jump-start stubbornly sluggish economies.
The combination of university talent, industry know-how, government assistance,
and venture seed capital has proven its efficacy in major urban areas, from
San Jose to Boston to Providence.
According to the National Association of Business Incubation, a majority (about
25 percent) of North America’s 1,000 business incubators are sponsored by academic
institutions. But at Brown, well, a funny thing happened on the way to the forum.
“We got MIT’s letter last month, about eight hours before the kickoff event,”
McMahon recalled with a laugh. “We came up with a fast compromise.”
John Persinos is a contributing writer to PBN.
