Patents

An essential device to fight the spread of COVID-19, the mask now represents a retail market in its own right. Marine Dissoubray spells out the IP implications.

Protecting patentable innovations in the US and EU is the foundation of many corporate patent portfolios. However, a first patent filing in the US can cause issues obtaining subsequent protection in Europe, as Nadège Lagneau explains.

Many companies estimate the health and relative worth of their IP portfolios based on size alone. However, those IP rights could be worth far less if the following checks and balances are not also considered.

An interim decision (T 0318/14, G 4/9), recently published in the Official Journal of the European Patent Office (EPO), has generated a number of comments from interested third parties on the topic of double patenting. This is a good time to take stock of this issue, says Martin Kohrs.

For a recent webinar, Novagraaf brought together experts in patent filing and portfolio management to share best practice on global patent strategies, including a comparison of the Patent Cooperation Treaty and European Patent systems. We summarise the key issues and guidance discussed.

On 22 September 2020, we brought together European patent filing and prosecution experts from across the IP community to discuss the why, where and how to manage EP validations, including how you could manage your EP strategy easily and more cost effectively.

When budgets are tight, IP expenditure will naturally come under scrutiny, with patent annuity payments often one of the first areas to be identified for cuts.

Priority is an essential element of patent law and its application by the European Patent Office (EPO) has been clarified through case law, as Stéphane Roux explains.

In our webinar looking at patent management in challenging times, Cédric Gaspoz offered advice on reducing costs and driving efficiencies in patent annuities. Here, we summarise the guidance and tools discussed.

Patent and trademark offices are adapting their working methods in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Read our overview of changes to procedural requirements, timeframes, channels of communication and other impacts on IPOs in Europe and worldwide. 

The UK IPO's period of 'interrupted days', which resulted in the extension of most deadlines, ends today (29 July 2020). However, aware of the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on applicants and proprietors of intellectual property rights, the Government has introduced a new statutory instrument making temporary amendments to the patent, trademark and design fee rules.

Patent analytics can provide valuable insights into current risks and future trends across all types of industry sectors, including the mining and retail of diamonds, as François Grange illustrates.