iSentio a Biotech Company Turns to Next Step to Expand Their U.S. Business

A Great Example of International Partnership

iSentio, an emerging Norwegian biotech company, was looking to expand to the United States and discovered Next Step from past successes. Next Step provided guidance in marketing assessment and research as well as US market expansion for this Norwegian life sciences company.

Innovation Norway, the Norwegian economic development organization and in partnership with Next Step, volunteered to provide two interns who were participating in an entrepreneur education program through Innovation Norway. Next Step provided the interns leadership resources and guidance while they conducted the research to learn and develop.

Innovation Norway is the Norwegian government’s official trade representative abroad. Their aim is to assist Norwegian businesses grow and find new markets. Through Innovation Norway, Norwegian enterprises have access to a broad business support system as well as financial means. Innovation Norway provides competence, advisory services, promotional services and network services. The marketing of Norway as a tourist destination is also considered one of the organization’s important tasks. By combining local industry knowledge and international networks with the business ideas and the motivation of entrepreneurs, the foundation for new successful businesses is created.

Innovation Norway contributes to:

• Enhancing innovation in Norwegian enterprises and industry
• Building competitive Norwegian enterprises at both domestic and international markets
• Promoting Norwegian enterprises
• Promoting Norway as an attractive tourist destination
• Securing development in rural areas
• Transforming ideas into successful business cases
• Promote interaction between enterprises, knowledge communities and R&D institutions

About iSentio AS (www.isentio.com)
iSentio was founded in 2005 and is based on research done on advanced DNA analysis methods by the three founders, Øyvind Kommedal, Øystein Sæbø and Bjarte Karlsen. The resulting product, RipSeq(R), is an online software tool for rapid bacterial identification, with focus on analyzing mixed clinical samples. In the first quarter of 2011, iSentio AS opened its office in Sunnyvale, California which is a significant step in the company’s strategy to grow globally. As a fast growing life science software company, this presence in the innovative environment of Silicon Valley, with access to key resources and customers, is crucial for the company to meet its objectives to make RipSeq(R) the leading DNA analysis tool for pathogen identification