Number of patent applications is still rising

The number of patent applications once again increased. In 2015, 1.6% more applications were filed at the European Patent Office (EPO). In recent years the number of applications actually increased constantly. A small dip in 2009, but this was offset by a very large increase in 2010. In total, EPO filed in 2015 278,867 patent applications.

The growth is a major part of the large companies such as Philips, Samsung and LG. Interestingly, the medical technology shows the largest growth in the number of patents. An increase of 11%; Philips here is the largest applicant.

You could almost think that it is not attractive for small businesses to apply for a patent. But still one in four new applications is applied by small and medium sized business and individual inventors.

PatentsProfs focuses specifically on small businesses and inventors. We find the most suitable patent attorney, who can write the application for the best price. Learn more about what we can do for you? Contact us at: +31 30 2282750.

Freedom to Operate

The market for new products is growing and growing. This growth makes it extremely difficult to find out if a product you want to import from f.e. China is infringing the patent of a third party. It can be very risky to go-to-market without a proper freedom to operate search.

Our freedom to operate search helps companies to detect third party patents that may hinder commercial exploitation, such as import, of an invention. If you identify conflicting patents early on, your company is able to reduce the risk of launching a product with specs that infringe a third party’s rights.

Infringing a third party’s patent could be very expensive and time consuming. So, to avoid these risks it is safer to have a thorough search done in advance. Better safe than sorry. At PatentProfs we can do this Freedom to Operate Search starting at € 1250 for a simple search to € 2000 for an extensive search for complex patents.