>> If what you'd really like to do is preserve your right to do
>> something with it later, offer to sell them a license for $1
>> and some options.
>
> options? they aren't in the picture now are they? we're not public.
Public or not, every corporation has stock. That's what they'll sell (along with some assets) if/when they do a deal. They probably don't want to give you stock at this late date, but they might have some options handy for just this kind of situation. In this case, the options only have value if they actually sell. You can bet that other professionals they are working with (lawyers, accountants, bankers) are getting a slice of options in preparation for selling.
My grandmother used to say: it never hoits to ask.
/jordan