TABA Service Providers

Recognizing that commercialization is hard, Congress has made a portion of the SBIR/STTR funds specific to commercialization activities. Designated as TABA (technical and business assistance) funds you can access up to $6.5K in Phase I and up to $50K in Phase II for commercialization activities. DOE provides these funds outside of the award amount. However, there are some stipulations. The funds can’t be reallocated for R&D, used it to pay staff, or used for travel. See the current Funding Opportunity Announcement for more information.

TABA funds can be used for the following activities:

• Product sales support
• Intellectual property protections
• Patent prosecution costs related to obtaining United States patent protection for subject inventions of this award. Patent prosecution costs include attorney fees and United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) fees. United States patent protection includes filings with the USPTO related to provisional, Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), non-provisional, continuation, and continuation-in-part patent applications. Patent prosecution costs related to foreign patent protection (e.g., foreign attorney, foreign patent office or translation fees) are unallowable.
• Market research
• Market validation
• Development of certifications and regulatory plans
• Development of manufacturing plans
• Conference/event participation for networking with stakeholders (exclusive of travel)

Services are defined as acts of assistance in which no goods are exchanged. In some situations, incidental goods, such a report on the services provided, are exchanged. The following examples are provided for clarification:

• Market research: Conducting market research in the planned area of commercialization is a service, and a report describing the finding is typically provided.
• Advertising: Developing an advertising strategy or designing advertising campaign materials are services. Paying to place ads or print brochures would not be considered a service.
• Website development: Developing website content is a service.

REGISTER to find TABA Service Providers by filtering PARTNER ROLE = PROVIDER and SERVICE CATEGORY = COMMERCIALIZATION SERVICES.