Editor's Chair: Fixing European patents

On 31 March, the European Commission closed a comment period on one of its biggest – but most embarrassing – technology issues: improving EU patenting procedures.

For 30 years, the commission has been trying to fix the broken patent process, which requires filing in multiple languages and dispute settlement in multiple jurisdictions. But each time, it has run afoul of one entrenched interest or another.

In January, EU Internal Market & Services Commissioner Charlie McCreevy reopened the issue by inviting a new round of proposals and comments on patent policy. So far, he has given little hint about what policy proposals will actually emerge – and most Brussels lobbyists who follow the issue aren’t hopeful he will succeed in breaking the policy logjam. Nevertheless, the next step is a public hearing he plans on 13 June.

So as its contribution to the Commission’s comment solicitation, Science|Business offers the following summary of European patent costs, provided by Franck Tetaz, a partner in French intellectual-property law firm Cabinet Regimbeau. It, more than anything else, highlights why change is needed.

By Tetaz’s count, the cost of applying for an international patent (filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, or PCT) in Europe starts at €11,000 and can easily pass €40,000 as applicants add countries to the patent’s range.

But that’s just the start. Then comes the cost of maintaining the patent in the years that follow. His estimates: In Europe, €200,000 over 20 years. That compares to €50,000 in Japan and Korea, and €10,000 in the US, Canada and Australia.

Is it any wonder that European countries keep dropping in the world patent leagues? The same month that McCreevy began his policy maneuver, the World Intellectual Property Office released its annual report on international patenting – and once again, Asian countries vaulted ahead of Europeans. Korea pushed ahead of the Netherlands, and China pushed Italy out of the top ten filers in the world.