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In theory the French EU Presidency’s aims on research and innovation shouldn’t be impeded by fissures in the Lisbon Treaty. In practice, this political crisis will be hugely distracting.

Finland already beats the rest of Europe on R&D spending. Now it plans to boost it still further to 4 per cent of GDP by 2011.

Supreme Court Rulings and patent reform are making it harder to defend patents in the US – and biotechs are falling back on trade secrets to protect their IP.

Industrial giant GE has based one of its three global R&D Centres in Munich. Centre head Carlos Härtel gives Science|Business an insight into the research that goes on there.

A single structure for start-up companies is critical for innovation, said Commissioner Charlie McCreevy at the launch of the Small Business Act for Europe.

Edinburgh Instruments has made its first sale of a new product containing technology developed in an ITI R&D programme, triggering a royalty payment to ITI.

Europe has started doing better in IT research but still has a lot more to do to capitalise on the results, says a report by former Finnish Prime Minister Esko Aho.

The European Commission has published its Small Business Act for Europe in a bid to cut red tape and establish a new pan-European company structure.

The Council of Ministers is to provide €100 million from the EU’s 7th Framework Programme to boost research capacities of SMEs in Europe.

After months of lobbying, the Hungarian capital was chosen as headquarters for the European Institute of Technology and Innovation.