Freedom to operate

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Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ. Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007 Harnessing Patent Information for Enterprise Competitiveness Olivier Sacroug European Patent Attorney Katzarov SA

Transcript of Freedom to operate

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Harnessing Patent Information for

Enterprise Competitiveness

Olivier Sacroug

European Patent AttorneyKatzarov SA

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Information in the world of IP

– Patent information– Scientific publications– Marketing information

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• What is patent information?– published patent applications– published search reports– granted patents– published decisions– gazettes of patent offices

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Why is patent information important?– Almost 1’000’000 new patent documents

published every year over the last 10 years– 50’000’000 patent documents worldwide,

describing 15’000’000 inventions– Exceptional source of technological

information

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Patent information is:– up-to-date– uniformly structured– unique– well organized– concentrated– quickly and easily accessed– inexpensive

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Patent information is important for– large companies– small and medium enterprises– scientists and researchers– inventors– investors– patent attorneys, patent searchers– ...

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• How to conduct searches– mandate an external provider:

• patent search service provider• patent firm• patent offices

– hire a specialist (patent agent, searcher)– search online (ep.espacenet.com)

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• How to retrieve patent information– use cited references– use patent classification (IPC, EPC)– use key words– use filing numbers– use bibliographic data (applicant, inventors)– combining the above

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Different uses of patent information

– Patentability studies– Freedom to operate studies (FTO)– Technology surveys– Defensive publications

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Patentability study

– Can I get a patent for my invention?

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Freedom to operate study

– Can I market my invention?

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Technology Survey

– What do the others do?

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Defensive publication

– How can I prevent third parties from patenting something?

Patentability Study

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Patentability study: why?

– To evaluate the chances of obtaining a patent for a determined invention / development

– To help writing a better patent application– To avoid unnecessary costs of preparing and

filing a useless patent application

Patentability Study

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Patentability study: when?

– Once a solution is defined– Before filing a patent application

Patentability Study

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Patentability study: what?

– Any publication (patent or non-patent documents)

Patentability Study

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Patentability study: how?– Look for the core features of the invention

(the special case destroys the novelty of the general case)

– Limited scope (often limited to a predefined budget)

– Stops as soon as the invention is anticipated by one or more documents

Patentability Study

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Patentability study: result

– Limited set of documents– Recommendations about the patenting

strategy

Patentability Study

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Patentability study: actions

+ File a patent application to protect your invention

+/- Adapt / limit the scope of protection to a part of your invention only

- Give up any patent protection

FTO

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Freedom to operate study: why?

– Avoid being attacked for infringement by one or more competitors

– Identify necessary licenses

FTO

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Freedom to operate study: when?

– Before starting a new development– Just before going to market: usually too late

FTO

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Freedom to operate study: what?

– Granted and valid patents– Patent applications

FTO

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Freedom to operate study: how?

– Extensive search– Look for broad patents– Patent family and validity searches– Carefully analyse patent claims– “Old” patents are disregarded (> 20 years)

FTO

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Freedom to operate study: result– One or more patent families with legal status,

time and geographical limits of each patent– Identification of possible infringements– Identification of possible licensors– Risk assessment

FTO

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

• Freedom to operate study: actions

+ continue the development as planned

+/- modify the solution

+/- accept the risks

- negotiate licenses

- abandon, change direction

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Technology Survey: why?– Understand what is occurring in your (future)

technological area:• technological trends• subjects of research• emerging research fields

– Avoid reinventing the wheels• find existing solutions to a technical problem• find solutions that are not yet protected

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Technology Survey: why?– Watch your competitors

• key players• patent portfolios• technical strategies

– Survey third parties patents• patenting trends• threats• infringements

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Technology Survey: when?

– Before entering a new field– Continuously (usually starts after the first bad

experience)

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Technology Survey: what?

– Patent documents– Scientific publications, newspapers, journals– Marketing information– Company publication– ...

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Technology Survey: how?

– Search script / strategy• Defined once• Periodically run• Continuously adapted

– Embrace all documentation found– Analyse

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Technology Survey: results

– Patent documents– Statistics:

• per country / region• per company / inventor• per patent classification• per year

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Why do I need statistics

– Country / region: markets of interest– Company: cooperating companies– Inventor: top inventors in a company– Classification: R&D focus– Year: old or emerging technological field

Tech. Survey

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Defensive Publ.

• Technology Survey: actions

– Oppose your competitors new patents– Adapt your R&D, marketing, investing and/or

business strategies– Assess your strategy regarding new activities

Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey

• Defensive publication: why?

– Prevent a third party from patenting something

Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey

• Defensive publication: how?

– Publish discretely• Publish through specialized companies• File a patent application in an “exotic” country

Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey

• Defensive publication: result

– Published document with a certified publication date

Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey

• Defensive publication: action

– If necessary, use your defensive publication to destroy novelty of a competitor’s patent

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

• Conclusion:

– Harnessing information, in particular patent information, is essential to the establishment of a coherent and efficient business strategy and to avoid disputes with competitors.

– Leads to greater earnings.

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Questions?

Patentability Study FTO Tech. Survey Defensive Publ.

Copyright © KATZAROV S.A. 20/02/2007

Olivier Sacroug

Katzarov SAEuropean Patent & Trademark Attorneys

Geneva and Basel

[email protected]: +41 22 342 66 30Fax: +41 22 342 66 15

www.katzarov.com

Thank You!