InfoCons Consumer Protection informs you about Intellectual Property Rights Management – Prevention , Protection and Sustainable Innovation
In a knowledge and innovation driven economy, intellectual property (IP) has become a strategic asset for the competitiveness of any organization. It is no longer sufficient to merely create and secure legal protection for inventions, trademarks or designs — it is essential to manage these assets correctly and efficiently.
Intellectual property rights management ensures the optimal use of IP assets, their economic valorisation, the prevention of disputes, and the promotion of secure collaborations within research and development projects.
InfoCons Consumer Protection for Intellectual Property informs you about the basic principles of intellectual property management, particularly in the context of research and innovation.
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Management of intellectual property forms
Among all forms of protection, the patent for invention plays a central role, being closely linked to technological innovation and economic progress.
Patent management requires a comprehensive approach, including:
- Invention protection management – administering the organization’s patent portfolio, identifying patentable inventions, filing applications and maintaining rights in force;
- Technical information management – using and analysing patent documentation as a source of scientific and technological information;
- Rights transfer management – evaluating and negotiating assignments, licences or patent-based collaborations;
- Rights enforcement management – ensuring compliance and protecting patents against infringement or counterfeiting.
Proper management of an intellectual property portfolio allows an organization not only to protect innovation, but also to transform it into valuable economic resources.
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Intellectual property rights management in the context of innovation
Within research, development and innovation (RDI) projects, intellectual property management must be planned from the proposal preparation stage.
Project coordinators and consortium partners should establish from the outset:
- an IP rights management plan (who owns which rights and under what conditions);
- communication and information-sharing mechanisms between partners;
- rules regarding the dissemination of results and the protection of confidential information.
A strategic approach to intellectual property at the design stage helps prevent future conflicts and supports the efficient exploitation of project results.
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Assignment of intellectual property rights
When multiple partners collaborate within a project, it is essential that the partnership agreement clearly regulates the assignment and exploitation of intellectual property rights.
To ensure fairness and transparency, such agreements must respect the following principles:
- adequate protection of the resulting intellectual property;
- recognition of each participant’s contribution;
- effective exploitation of results (patents, publications, licences, etc.);
- non-discriminatory treatment of participants;
- confidentiality of shared information;
- development of a joint technology management plan, including ownership rights and result dissemination.
Confidential information requires special protection. If one party discloses non-public information, the receiving party must keep it confidential and use it strictly within the contractual limits. Once the information is made public by its rightful owner, these restrictions automatically cease.
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Intellectual property rights management in RDI projects involving SMEs
European and national research programmes encourage collaboration between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and public research institutions (universities, national R&D institutes, innovation centres, etc.).
These partnerships combine the scientific infrastructure and technological capacity of research institutions with the entrepreneurial spirit and market orientation of SMEs.
Depending on each party’s contribution, several IP rights allocation regimes may apply:
- SMEs or SME associations retain rights over results, particularly when they finance the project or directly apply the outcomes;
- Research institutions become owners of the results, especially when they make the main technological contribution;
- Mixed regimes, where rights are shared proportionally, according to contributions and exploitation plans established contractually.
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Effective IP rights management in such contexts must ensure:
- early clarification of rights holders;
- respect for the moral and economic rights of creators;
- mechanisms for sharing the benefits derived from result exploitation.
Intellectual property rights management is not merely a legal matter, but a core component of any organization’s development and innovation strategy.
Whether we refer to patents, trademarks, designs or copyrights, proper administration of these resources ensures recognition, protection, value creation and sustainability.
In research, strong partnerships are built on transparency, trust and clear intellectual property rules, essential guarantees for responsible and sustainable innovation.
Signature : InfoCons Intellectual Property Department