Managing protective rights sensibly

The granting of a protective right is rarely the end of the story. Industrial property rights are limited in time and in geographic extent. This is why it is necessary again and again to reassess your protective rights, to check them and to adjust them, to decide in which areas you wish to maintain these protective rights, to extend them or to let them lapse.

monitoring of

legal status

The lifetimes of (inter)national protective rights differ considerably, and the requirements with regard to the extension of IP rights are not very homogeneous either. This makes the monitoring of statutory time periods, which may also be connected with, or dependent on, each other, a very important task in the professional management of IP rights and a task we can help you with.

In smaller IP portfolios we can look after the extension of protective rights and, as required, the necessary payment of fees. In large or very large IP portfolios we can take care of communication with all established payment organisations or the coordination of procedures with these service providers. And finally we are also the right partner for your IP department when external advice or an expert opinion is needed – absolutely reliable and with many years of experience.

At the same time corporate strategies can often change fundamentally within the lifetime of IP rights. Markets are dynamic and it is essential, even in the management of IP rights, to respond in good time and to initiate corporate decision-making processes about the extension of protective rights. Changes in the market may well result in changes in the value of your protective-rights portfolio, both from a strategic point of view and from a financial one.

This naturally applies to individual protective rights but even more so to large IP portfolios. The fees for extensive protective rights, for large numbers of rights or for combined rights can cause considerable costs – sunk costs, if IP rights are no longer used sensibly in a company- or project-strategy.

For this reason we ensure that your property rights are appraised in a targeted manner and that you initiate decision-making processes in good time to reorganise your IP portfolio so that it is in line with your objectives and it is designed to be of economic benefit in the long term, too.

evaluation and

strategy

evaluation and

strategy

At the same time corporate strategies can often change fundamentally within the lifetime of IP rights. Markets are dynamic and it is essential, even in the management of IP rights, to respond in good time and to initiate corporate decision-making processes about the extension of protective rights. Changes in the market may well result in changes in the value of your protective-rights portfolio, both from a strategic point of view and from a financial one.

This naturally applies to individual protective rights but even more so to large IP portfolios. The fees for extensive protective rights, for large numbers of rights or for combined rights can cause considerable costs – sunk costs, if IP rights are no longer used sensibly in a company- or project-strategy.

For this reason we ensure that your property rights are appraised in a targeted manner and that you initiate decision-making processes in good time to reorganise your IP portfolio so that it is in line with your objectives and it is designed to be of economic benefit in the long term, too.

Our services

We can look after the sensible management of your protective rights by controlling their duration either directly, in co-operation with your IP department or in collaboration with an external service provider. In this way the rights which you want to continue to work with will be extended and those which are no longer of any legal or economic use will be allowed to lapse.

Patents / Utility models

  • Monitoring of the duration of protective rights / fees
  • Early reminders and maintenance of patents and utility models
  • Monitoring and analysis of patents and utility models and corresponding portfolios of third parties
  • Evaluation of patents / utility models and corresponding portfolios (Due Diligence)

Trade marks

  • Monitoring of the duration of protective rights / fees
  • Early reminders and extension of trade marks
  • Evaluation of trade marks / trade mark portfolios (Due Diligence)

Designs

  • Monitoring of the duration of protective rights / fees
  • Early reminders and extension of designs
  • Evaluation of designs / design portfolios (Due Diligence)

Employee inventions

  • Establishment of the appropriate remuneration for employees’ inventions
  • Seminars for the training of employees who, by nature of their working duties and objectives, are regularly concerned with making inventions

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