The French National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI) conducted last autumn an online survey indicating the intention of patent owners to register their patents as unitary patent, their perception of this new patent, and their current registration practice.
124 participants responded to the survey, consisting of 58 companies, 7 research organisations, 37 Patent Attorneys Firms, and 22 others. All together the participants represented for 20% the chemistry industry, 17% Electronics and Communications sector, and for 15% Services. Out of all participants 60.3% of them were large companies, 18.9% medium sized companies, and 20.8% small companies.
(Click on the graphs to see what the participants to the survey answered)
To the first question “Do you intend to use the Unitary Patent?”, the participants answered:
To the second question “If you intend to use the Unitary Patent, what are your reasons for doing so?”, the participants answered:
To the third question “If you do not intend to use the Unitary Patent, what are your reasons for doing so?”, the participants answered:
To the fourth question “Do you agree with the following?”, the participants responded:
To the fifth question “Which submission do you use?”, the participants responded:
To the sixth question “If you use European Patents, how many EPC states do you validate in?”, the participants responded:
It therefore appears that 73% of respondents consider that the Unitary Patent is necessary and that 50% of them will be partially using it for their patents. The main reason for its use appears to be the fact that it offers reduced costs compared to the European patent, while the main hindrance is the perceived legal risk attached to this new patent.
Above all, this survey shows that just a year before the entry into force of the UPC (scheduled for 01/02/2017), companies, law firms and patent attorneys have started working on the best strategy for them to adopt. We would like to know your thoughts on this survey and whether you have decided which attitude you will adopt towards the Unitary Patent and the UPC.