\n19 May 2022<\/b>\n<\/p>\n
\nOn 12 and 13 May, the EPO held the PATLIB2022 conference online.
\nOrganised in co-operation with the European Commission once again this year, the
\nevent was attended via the official event platform by more than 1 300 registered
\nparticipants from 83 countries. In addition, the proceedings of the opening day
\nwere streamed on EPO social media channels, attracting a further 2 500 viewers.\n<\/p>\n
\nIn his welcome address, EPO President Ant\u00f3nio
\nCampinos emphasised the event’s major significance in terms of joining up support
\nfor innovation and knowledge valorisation across Europe: „It is the
\nPATLIBs that will continue to play a key role in helping inventors understand
\nhow patents, both unitary and classical, can help to grow businesses and bring innovations
\nto market, innovations that can help create a more sustainable world. And with
\neverything we see going on around us, I think we all understand that the role
\nof PATLIBs is more important than ever“, he said.\n<\/p>\n
\nPresident Campinos went on to highlight how
\npatents and intellectual property (IP) rights can foster innovation that drives
\ncompany performance, supports entire economies and secures greater
\nsustainability, including with regard to helping achieve the United Nations
\nSustainable Development Goals. He also outlined how the PATLIB network will
\ncontribute to the training of tech transfer professionals and to a new pilot
\nprogramme to extend innovation support to several African universities and
\nresearch centres in co-operation with the African Regional Intellectual
\nProperty Organization (ARIPO), the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI)
\nand the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).\n<\/p>\n
\nJean-Eric Paquet, Director-General for
\nResearch and Innovation at the European Commission, celebrated the
\ncollaboration between the two co-organisers of the conference by drawing
\nattention to the positive social impact that strengthening European innovation
\necosystems can have: „Increasingly, the way we look at research in Europe is
\nalso to create value for society, helping Europe transform into a digital
\ncontinent and ensuring our green transformation. Innovation is going to be at
\nthe heart of these two transformations. And therefore the work you are doing on
\nconnecting knowledge, science and solutions with many investors, actors in the
\neconomy and civil society, for them to know about these solutions, and then
\neffectively pick them up, deploy them: this is really what our ambition should
\nbe.“\n<\/p>\n
\nThe conference
\nreflected the achievements of the PATLIB network of patent information centres
\nand the PATLIB 2.0 project in promoting technology transfer and IP
\ncommercialisation. This included showcasing work with new network partners such
\nas the European Innovation Council (EIC). Keynote speaker and EIC Board Member
\nAnita Krohn Traaseth was highly enthusiastic about working together with the
\nEPO to identify emerging trends in the technology landscape and explore how
\nthey impact innovators.\n<\/p>\n
\nOther major highlights included European
\nCommission Director Peter Dr\u00f6ll chairing a panel on common values and
\nprinciples for research and innovation valorisation, including those outlined
\nin the European Research Area Policy Agenda 2022-2024. The EPO’s Director of
\nEuropean and International Legal Affairs Michael Fr\u00f6hlich then explained how
\nthe Unitary Patent will facilitate access to patent protection for SMEs,
\nuniversities and public research institutions. He was joined by Jos\u00e9 Aguilar of
\nthe PATLIB centre Instituto Pedro Nunes in Portugal, who illustrated the Unitary
\nPatent’s benefits with a start-up case study.\n<\/p>\n
\nFurther panel discussions explored how various
\ninnovation ecosystem actors can incentivise the sharing of IP and the role of
\nEuropean support programmes for innovators in fostering entrepreneurial and
\nfinancial know-how. There were also updates on the work about to begin with further
\nnew EPO partners such as the European Institute of Innovation and Technology
\n(EIT) and the European Technology Transfer Offices Circle. Finally, EIC Director
\nJean-David Malo joined Christoph Ernst, the EPO’s Vice-President for Legal and
\nInternational Affairs, to wrap up the event.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe EPO is delighted to welcome the PATLIB2022 recordings<\/a><\/p>\n
\nfirst patent information centres from two additional countries: the Industrial
\nProperty Office of Monaco and the Institute for Intellectual Property of Bosnia
\nand Herzegovina. Today, the PATLIB
\nnetwork<\/a> now has around 330 centres operating
\nacross 37 countries in total.
\n<\/p>\n