PATENT PROTECTION AS A FACTOR OF INNOVATING IN A COMPANY

Podjetja si v današnjem hitro se spreminjajočem okolju ne morejo zagotoviti obstoja oz. napredka brez inoviranja. Pri tem gre za nenehen proces ustvarjanja invencij in inovacij. Da bi pa podjetja bila ustrezno motivirana za inoviranje, je učinkovit in cenovno dostopen patentni sistem nuja. S patenti se zavaruje izum, ki je nov, na inventivni ravni in industrijsko uporabljiv. Glavni motiv za patentiranje je zaščita pred posnemanjem konkurence. Posamezniki oz. podjetja se lahko glede na lastne potrebe in finančne zmožnosti odločijo za pridobitev nacionalnega, evropskega ali mednarodnega patenta. Vsak izmed teh ima svoje prednosti, slabosti in je povezan z različno visokimi stroški pridobitve patenta. Kadar si podjetje želi pridobiti patentno varstvo v nekaj evropskih državah, je smiselno da vloži evropsko patentno prijavo. Vendar ima trenutni evropski sistem precej slabosti, kar negativno vpliva na inovacijski proces. Zaradi cenovne nedostopnosti in pravne negotovosti evropskega patenta, potekajo v Evropski uniji že desetletja razprave o uvedbi patenta EU. Ta bi imel unitaren značaj in bi zagotavljal enotno pravno varstvo na celotnem ozemlju EU. Nadalje bi zagotavljal nizke finančne stroške za uporabnike patentnega sistema, saj bi bila odpravljena potreba po prevodih patenta oz. patentnih zahtevkov v uradne jezike posameznih držav. Navedeno bi pozitivno vplivalo na inovacijske procese podjetij. V kolikor pa želi izumitelj pridobiti varstvo v več državah sveta, je koristen PCT sistem. PCT prijava omogoča prijavitelju, da lahko uveljavlja pravice nacionalne patentne prijave v vseh državah pogodbenicah, ne da bi že na začetku moral predložiti prevod ali plačati prijavno pristojbino v vsaki državi posebej. Nacionalna faza postopka za podelitev patenta in plačilo s tem povezanih visokih stroškov sta lahko odložena do izteka 30. meseca (ponekod 31.) od dneva vložitve prve prijave. Dodatno pridobljen čas 18-ih mesecev, lahko imetnik patenta izkoristi za iskanje komercialnih priložnosti v tujini, omogoča pa mu tudi odložitev z odločitvijo v katerih državah si bo kasneje prizadeval pridobiti patentno varstvo. Patenti sicer nagrajujejo inovatorja in delujejo kot spodbuda, vendar lahko močna patentna zaščita tudi negativno vpliva na inovacije. Kadar je patentna zaščita močnejša, inovatorji težje obidejo patent. To lahko posamezne inovatorje prisili, da se vzdržijo inoviranja, kar lahko vodi v upad v inovacijski dejavnosti in prelivanju znanja. Navedeno pa negativno vpliva na vse inovatorje. Kadar pa imajo inovatorji več možnosti za re-inoviranje okoli inovacije vodilnega (šibka patentna zaščita), so si med seboj konkurenčni. Razpolagajo namreč s podobno tehnologijo, zato so inovatorji prisiljeni uporabljati rizične inovacijske strategije. Takšne strategije pa lahko vodijo do izjemnih odkritij. Optimalna patentna zaščita je specifična za vsak primer. Odvisna je od naprednosti nacionalnega inovacijskega sistema in vključenosti tehnologije.In today\u27s rapidly changing business environment, companies cannot ensure their existence and progress without innovation, which means a continuous process of creating inventions and innovations. In order to make companies adequately motivated to innovate, an efficient and affordable patent system is a must. Patents protect new products on the level of invention and industrial usability. The main motivation for patenting is to protect the product from being copied by the competition. Based on their needs and financial position, individuals and companies can choose between obtaining a national, European or international patent. Each of these has its advantages and disadvantages and is related to different amount of costs for obtaining the patent. When a company wishes to obtain patent protection in several European countries, it is reasonable to apply for a European patent. The current European system, however, has quite a few weaknesses, which has a negative impact on the innovation process. Due to non-affordability and legal uncertainty of European patents, there has been an ongoing discussion in the European Union for decades regarding the introduction of an EU patent. Such patent would have a unifying character and would provide consistent legal protection in the entire EU territory. Furthermore, it would ensure low financial costs for users of the patent system since it would eliminate the need to translate patents and patent applications into official languages of individual states, which would have a positive influence on innovation processes in companies. If an inventor wants to obtain patent protection in several countries, the PCT system can be very useful. A PCT application allows the applicant to exercise the rights conferred by the national patent application in all member states without having to first submit a translation or pay the application fee in each state separately. The national stage of granting a patent and the payment of significant costs related to the procedure can be delayed until the end of the 30th month (31st month in some cases) from the date of the first application. The patent owner can use the additionally acquired time of 18 months to look for commercial opportunities abroad, and it also allows him to postpone the decision about the countries in which he will attempt to obtain patent protection at a later stage. Patents are a reward and an encouragement for innovators, but strong patent protection can also have a negative effect on innovations. When patent protection is stronger, it is harder for innovators to circumvent patents. That can force some innovators to refrain from innovating, which can lead to a decrease of innovation activities and knowledge spillover. All this has a negative impact on all innovators. On the other hand, when innovators have a greater possibility to re-innovate around a leading innovation (weak patent protection), they are competitive among themselves. Since they have similar technology at their disposal, innovators are forced to use risky innovation strategies, and such strategies can lead to extraordinary discoveries. Optimum patent protection is specific for each individual case. It depends on the advancedness of the national innovation system and technology involvement