convincing smes that intellectual property matters managing innovation: economic aspects of...
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Convincing SMEs thatintellectual property matters
Managing innovation: economic aspects of industrial property
Kraków2-3 September 2010
Jeremy PhilpottEuropean Patent Academy
What will we discuss today?
• Brief introduction to the EPO
• Making intellectual property relevant for SMEs
• Activities of the European Patent Academy
37 member states
European patent applications and patents can also be extended at the applicant's request to the following states:
Bosnia-Herzegovina • Montenegro • Serbia1
1 Serbia will join the EPO with effect from 1 October 2010
Albania • Austria • Belgium • Bulgaria • Croatia • Cyprus • Czech Republic • Denmark • Estonia • Finland • France • Germany • Greece • Hungary • Iceland • Ireland • Italy • Latvia • Liechtenstein • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia • Malta • Monaco • Netherlands • Norway • Poland • Portugal • Romania • San Marino • Slovakia • Slovenia • Spain • Sweden • Switzerland • Turkey • United Kingdom
Autonomy
• Second largest
intergovernmental
institution in Europe
• Not an EU institution
• Self-financing, i.e.
revenue from fees
covers operating and
capital expenditure
Number of staff in 2009
Munich 3 718
The Hague 2 710
Berlin 274
Vienna 112
Total 6 818
Around 60% are patent examiners
Brussels 4
83 567
63 077
78 646
55 896
0 90 000
2008 2009
Applications filed
Direct European filings
Euro-PCT applications entering the regional phase
European patents granted
59 809
51 969
0 64 000
2008
2009
The EPO grants only ca 40% of all applications received
Poland was designated on ca 40.06% of all granted patents 20 821Only 33 patents from Poland were granted in 2009: just 0,9 patents per million inhabitants. The European average is 46,9.
Applications by residence of applicant (2009)
Only 173 patent applications
from Poland were filed in 2009,
up from 104 in 2007.
This equates to just 4.5 applications
per million inhabitants.
The European average is 116,1.
Why does intellectual property matter?
• IP enables creativity to be protected, and clearly establishes who owns what
• IP can be licensed or sold
• It can be a key negotiating tool - a "deal-maker"
• IP will attract investment
• IP appears as an asset on the company accounts, even if other parts of the business get into trouble
One product – many IP rightsim
age
© N
OK
IA®
• Reg. Designs for phone shape
• Reg. Trade Mark - "NOKIA" & start-up tone
• Copyright - software, ringtones & images
• Patents - for technology to produce and
operate. Some pooled or cross-licensed,
others kept exclusive
• Trade secrets - some technical know-how
kept "in-house" and not published
"What has IP got to do with me?"
• SMEs do not see the relevance of IP to themselves - it is only for big companies
• Most are not active in patentable areas...
• ... but all of them work with copyright and brands!
• Most regard IP as expensive, complicated and risky
• Most are ignorant of the money to be made, and the opportunities created
From ip4inno Module 6B - "Selling the message"
Focus on the easy stuff
• "Our company does not have any IP"
• Tell them about copyright and other forms of unregistered IP
• Once they realise that they are already IP owners, it is easier to convince them of the relevance of IP
• Even with patents, focus on patent information for strategic intelligence; or explain licensing-in as an alternative to patent ownership
From ip4inno Module 6B - "Selling the message"
Patents - what not to say
• Describing patents simply as a way to block competitors
is out-of-date and unconvincing
• Few SMEs can afford litigation to enforce anyway
• Few SMEs care about controlling a monopoly!
• Explaining how to apply for a patent is less important
than explaining why to apply
From ip4inno Module 6B - "Selling the message"
Patents in context
• Knowing patent law is not the same as knowing patent
strategy
• Examples of how patent strategy, as part of overall
business planning, can bring commercial advantages, is
far more persuasive than lecturing on patent law
• Speak the language of the SMEs - MONEY
From ip4inno Module 6B - "Selling the message"
IP can impact SMEs in unexpected ways...
• A graphic designer has been commissioned by a client
to produce publicity material on paper that folds in a
very special way.
• The supplier of this paper states he owns the patent
on this particular type of folded paper, and will charge
a high price. He threatens the designer that using
similar paper supplied by anyone else would be an
infringement of his patent rights.
The graphic designer and the folded paper
• Does the supplier really have a patent? No, he doesn't!
• The public patent database, esp@cenet, shows that he only has a pending application. The number of citations against the application, according to the search report, casts doubt on its likelihood for future success.
• The database shows over 200 other documents relating to the same technology. Many of these are not in force.
• The proprietor of one of these other documents (an abandoned application) has no patent rights, but is still able to happily supply the designer much more cheaply.
Popular Event Formats
• SMEs have very little spare time
• Offer e.g. 2 hour events in the evening
• Co-ordinate with a respected partner, e.g. Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise Europe Network office, University, Trade Association
• Use a mix of speakers, e.g. an IP attorney, a business advisor and a case study
• SMEs often trust messages from the private sector more than from public sector
From ip4inno Module 6B - "Selling the message"
ip4inno - twelve teaching modules, each 3-hours long
1A Patent basics
1B Other industrial property, e.g. reg. trade marks & reg. designs
2A Copyright & related rights
2B "Soft" IP - trade secrets, know-how, confidential information etc.
3A Patent information for supporting business decisions
3B esp@cenet tutorial
4A IP commercialisation (licensing; valuing; strategy)
4B Business planning around IP
5A IP enforcement (litigation & ADR; piracy & counterfeiting)
5B IP problem-solving exercises
6A IP issues by sector: Creative Industries; Software & CII; Biotech.
6B Promoting IP to SMEs (running workshops; PR campaigns)
Thank you for your attention!
Jeremy Philpott
Innovation Support jphilpott@epo.org
European Patent Academy +49 89 2399 5405
www.epo.org/academy
Inventors' Handbook
www.epo.org/topics/innovation-and-economy/handbook.html
New e-learning modules on computer-implemented inventions:
https://e-learning.epo.org -> Open Access modules -> Patent Knowledge
More extensive training for business advisors on a range of IP issues is available through the ip4inno project: http://www.ip4inno.eu/
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