The IP Lounge: From batting against Shane Warne to pitching to lawyers

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The IP Lounge: From batting against Shane Warne to pitching to lawyers

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Former professional cricketer Ben Scott talks through the challenges of building a legal tech platform, transitioning from sportsman to entrepreneur and why he believes he has found a gap in the market


Ben Scott has faced deliveries from fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar and legendary spinner Shane Warne, enough to make anyone quake in their boots.

The former professional cricketer was a wicketkeeper and batsman, primarily playing first-class county cricket for Surrey and Middlesex in the UK. He was also selected for the England Lions tour of New Zealand in 2009.

But he faced a different challenge altogether when, after ending his cricket career, he launched Etched – a legal tech platform for creatives to help manage and log their ideas and creations.

Scott left his comfort zone to enter the world of shiny boardrooms and business development, all the while navigating the tricky subject of IP, a topic he had little knowledge of at the start.

Asked which was harder, pitching to a room full of lawyers or facing Shane Warne and Shoaib Akhtar, he responded: “At least back then I had a bat.”

In this episode, Scott talks through his journey from sportsman to businessman, when he first became aware of IP, the parallels between the life of a sports star and an entrepreneur, and why he sees a gap in the market with Etched.

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