After many years of talks and preparations, now comes the opportunity to apply for a common EU patent.
The path to broad protection is simplified and the possibilities are enormous. At the same time, the importance of competition monitoring is becoming increasingly important. How is your business affected? How do you as a patent holder need to act and how urgent is it?
In the first half of 2023, the EU's new system for patents will finally be launched. With a Unified Patent Court (UPC) comes the possibility to apply for a European Unitary Patent (UP) with coverage in a large part of the EU member states. The choice to apply for patents in individual countries remains, but starting this spring, patents will also be granted on a broader front in one and the same step.
With this, the path to broad protection becomes significantly smoother, while at the same time the cost of broad coverage is reduced. From having to validate the patent in each country, the possibility to make the patent valid in all connected countries directly at the price of the corresponding four validated countries will now come through a unitary patent. This leads to an increased opportunity for trade in patented products and services, as well as increased opportunities in many other places when the respect for patents in Europe will increase.
However, a European unitary patent also means that a large number of new patents become valid in Sweden, and thus the need to monitor competitors also increases. Infringement charges may increase and vulnerable patents risk being invalidated. Moreover, the new Unified Patent Court itself will certainly face many challenges.
How should an entrepreneur think about upcoming applications and already active patents? Should they remain national, or is it time to raise them to EU level and increase the degree of coverage of their protection? And how will your business be affected when the majority of new patents become valid on the national market? What opportunities and challenges are coming?
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
