The European Commission in collaboration with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (“EUIPO”) have launched the Ideas Powered for Business SME Fund in support of Small and Medium Enterprises (“SMEs”) that wish to register, protect and safeguard their Intellectual Property Rights (“IPR”) – intangible assets that carry immense value for any business.
The Ideas Powered for Business SME Fund (the “Fund”) aims to assist SMEs to develop their Intellectual Property (“IP”) strategies and protect their IP rights, trademarks and designs, on national and EU level. The Fund is a grant scheme that will provide EUR 20 million of subsidies to SMEs across the EU, further strengthening their competitiveness in the EU market.
The Fund will co-finance SMEs to undertake either (i) an IP pre-diagnostics scan (the “IP scan”); or (ii) register their trademarks and designs with the EUIPO with a reimbursement of up to 50% of the application fees.
The IP scan assists SMEs to decide which IP rights to apply for, how to develop their IP portfolio (if they already have registered rights) and how to plan their strategies for the future. By registering their trade marks and designs, SMEs ensure protection for their intangible assets and guarantee attainable benefits deriving from such protection.
The Fund will run in 5 time periods throughout 2021 and interested entities can submit their applications only within either of the five periods. Applications submitted at any other times will not be considered.
| Application Periods |
|---|
| 11 January – 31 January 2021 |
| 01 March – 31 March 2021 |
| 01 May – 31 May 2021 |
| 01 July – 31 July 2021 |
| 01 September – 31 September 2021 |
Applications will be treated on a “first come – first served” basis and it is therefore crucial for entities to act promptly and submit applications within the set timeframes. The maximum reimbursement amount that can be awarded for each application has been set to EUR 1.500.
As part of our “Bridging the Gap Between Law and Innovation” initiative, our firm offers strategic legal and commercial advice on all aspects of the protection, exploitation and enforcement of IP rights, including copyright, patents and trademarks.
If you would like to find out more about the Ideas Powered for Business application procedure or would like to discuss your needs for registering your business’ trademarks and designs or what would be the most profitable actions for the exploitation and protection of your IP rights, you can contact us directly at the contact details provided herein below.
| Mikaela Kantor Advocate| Of Counsel Email: mk@dspartners.law Tel: +357 22 030099 Mob: +357 99 750573 |