Astronaut


Last year, Congress allowed NASA to keep receipts from commercial users of the International Space Station and reinvest them directly back into improving the commercial uses of the Station.

In this Congressionally authorized "Demonstration Program," NASA may retain revenues above costs from successful Station ventures—enabling NASA to flexibly price Station access to encourage private investment.

Monies retained must be reinvested in further Station commercialization in order to make the Station more attractive to further private sector investment.

Gain sharing
"Gain sharing" is one of the most powerful tools for developing a market and is used extensively in the "new economy."

The "gain sharing" provision allows NASA to receive higher revenues in the future if the business is successful.

Success in the private sector motivates NASA to follow suit with improvements on the Station that directly relate to the bottom line. (i.e., application of gain-sharing revenues to improve Station communication's capabilities.)

Commercial Agreements
Since the passage of the ISS Demonstration Program last October, NASA has signed two commercialization agreements with significant private sector investment.

  1. The first significant AND HISTORIC Station commercialization agreement between NASA and Dreamtime Holdings, Inc. was signed on June 2, 2000.

    For more details: www.multimedia.nasa.gov

  2. NASA signed a second commercial agreement with StelSys on September 12, 2000.

Background:
NASA invented the rotating Bioreactor as a way to study the impact of microgravity on cellular growth both here on Earth and in space. The spinning motion neutralizes most of gravity's effects, creating a near-weightless environment that allows cells to grow more freely, in a three-dimensional manner.

FVI and In Vitro Technoloigies, Inc. of Maryland formed a joint venture to turn this market-driven model into a scientific and commercial success. The new venture—StelSys, based in Baltimore, MD—will focus on commercializing microgravity research specifically in areas related to biological systems, specifically in four target areas.
    • Liver-Assist Device: NASA's biotechnology could lead to the development of a machine to sustain a patient who has liver disease, much the way a dialysis machine works for kidney patients.
    • Natural Vitamin D3 Production: People on kidney dialysis need D3, but it's expensive and difficult to purify. StelSys will determine if D3 can be produced more easily and less expensively by growing kidney cells.
    • Natural Metabolite Production: Metabolites can help pharmaceutical companies screen drug candidates sooner, thus speeding up the drug development process. StelSys will investigate the production of metabolites.
    • Culturing Infectious Diseases: Some infectious disease cells cannot be grown effectively using traditional technology. Finding better ways to grow these cultures could lead to better strategies for treatments and cures.
 

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