Your patent is a valuable intellectual asset that protects the core of your innovation and competitive advantage. Maintaining that protection is essential and requires meticulous management. An important aspect, for example, is the periodic timely payment of annual fees. Missing a payment deadline can lead to complications, additional costs and, in the worst case, even the loss of patent rights.
Continue reading
The importance of innovation was emphasised again this year by the awarding of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the ‘Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel’ — often referred to as the Nobel Prize in Economics.
Continue reading
Recently, the book Experimental Use and Bolar Exemptions (ISBN 9789403518695) was published in the AIPPI Law series. It provides a comparative overview for legislators, lawyers, and companies on the scope of patent protection, with a focus on two important exceptions: the exemption for experimental use and the Bolar exemption.
Continue reading
On a patent application (or patent), inventors employed by an employer have at least the right to be named. In some countries, such as the United States, there is an additional reason to name the correct inventors. If the wrong persons are named as inventors in such a country, the patent may not be enforceable.
Continue reading
In recent years, we have repeatedly warned against fraudulent invoices in this newsletter, a phenomenon that pops up from time to time.
Continue reading
The development of new inventions is often characterized by the cooperation of different parties. It is advisable to agree on the ownership on potential inventions already before the cooperation is started in a cooperation agreement to avoid intensive discussions or even a suit regarding unlawful ownership later when a patent application shall be or has been filed.
Continue reading
A new edition of Visser's Annotated European Patent Convention was recently published. The book is a leading and widely used commentary on the European Patent Convention (EPC) and a bestseller in European patent law.
Continue reading
On 2 July 2025, the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) ruled in case G 1/23, also known as the 'Solar Cell' case.
Continue reading
At a time when innovation and intellectual property (IP) protection are indispensable for business success, V.O. Patents & Trademarks' IP Academy, established in 2015, offers a solution.
Continue reading
On 20 August, V.O. and several clients experienced a special day in Amsterdam: a cruise on a former cargo ship to experience the impressive Sail-in Parade.
Continue reading