The Transfer of Patents in Imperial Germany* by

We describe the transfer of patents in late 19th- and early 20th- century Germany using a new and comprehensive database containing information on about 20,000 transactions. The num-ber of transactions shows an upward trend, in total numbers and as a share of patents in force. In total, about eight percent of patents were transferred at least once during their existence. Many transactions involved the transfer of patents with an above-average quality from indi-vidual inventors to firms and to newly-created – ‘entrepreneurial ’ – firms. In addition, valu-able patents were transferred between firms. About two-thirds of all transfers occurred during the first three years of a patents ’ existence, giving the new owner potentially a long period of patent protection