European Parliament adopts unitary patent rules
On 11 December 2012, the MEPs approved the EU patent package.
EU patent package is composed of three legislations: the regulation that introduces the system of a unitary patent, the rules regarding the translation of European patents and the international agreement creating a unified patent court. The idea of a unitary European patent was already being aired in 1957, while the latest attempt for its realization was put forward in 2004, but sunk by disagreement on language issues. These were apparently problematic also in the current package, as Italy and Spain rejected entering the system of a unitary patent. The unitary patent will be available in English, German and French. Regardless, the MEPs presented the package, that will enter into force on 1 January 2014 or after thirteen contracting states ratify it, as a great success, which will reduce the costs of obtaining patent protection on EU levels up to 80%. This system will be able to compete with the American and Japanese system, where patent protection was cheaper than in the EU.
Source: Press release of the European Parliament, Questions and Answers.
The Grand Board of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) finally ruled that the figurative sign ‘COVIDIOT’ cannot be registered as an EU trademark.
The 4th Open Knowledge Day took place on Tuesday 17 October 2023, with an accompanying workshop on 18 October 2023. This year it was organised by the Open Data and Intellectual Property Institute (ODIPI) and supported by Knowledge Rights 21 (KR21).
We invite you to the fourth Open Knowledge Day and the workshop, which will take place this year within the framework of the programme and with the support of Knowledge Rights 21. The event will bring together experts from different European countries to discuss two topics: the first part will deal with the legal basis for data analytics, which is a key part of machine learning and related artificial intelligence, and the general exception for research. In the second part, open science in theory and practice will be presented both in Slovenia and in some Western Balkan countries. Representatives of research and educational institutions from Slovenia and the Western Balkan countries, as well as interested members of the public, are invited to attend.
Dr. Maja Bogataj Jančič, a renowned expert in copyright law, has joined the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, where she will serve as an affiliate researcher for the next two years.