Craig Evans

LED lighting pioneers scoop Nobel Prize

October 17, 2014

Three scientists have been awarded $1.1 million in prize money after winning the 2014 Nobel Prize, led by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano (both Japanese) and U.S. scientist Shuji Nakamura shared the prize for the development of Blue LED technology. Up until the early-90’s engineers and scientists had discovered how to make red and green LED’s but had struggled with creating blue diodes which were the key to creating white lamps that would eventually make the…

EPO launches new online patent filing system

October 6, 2014

The European Patent Office (EPO) has launched a new online filing system for patent applications. There has reportedly been an increase in the demand for such systems to be introduced over the last few years by patent holders frustrated with having to submit paper applications. The EPO said that it is another step towards automating the application process, minimising the risk of human error and reducing the cost of patent filing. EPO President Benoît Battistelli said: “The new system supports…

5 people who proved the true worth of a patent

September 1, 2014

Levi Strauss buys revolutionary denim patent In the early 70’s an American tailor called Jacob Davies realised that he could use metal rivets on jeans to make them more durable. It may have been a seemingly tiny alteration in the clothing market but would end up evolving into a huge worldwide success. Davies was unfortunately unable to afford the patent office fees in order to adequately protect the idea so approached an unknown store owner called Levi Strauss to pay…

What small business can learn from Apple & Samsung’s patent lawsuit

August 18, 2014

The World’s two biggest smartphone manufacturers, Apple and Samsung, have been fighting a very public patent war in the US courts, finally this week agreeing to drop litigation from territories outside of the US. Apple first sued Samsung in 2011 for alleged copyright breaches on the iPhone, Samsung then counter-sued in regions including South Korea, Japan, Australia, Germany, France and the UK. Although both sides have agreed to drop their legal action in regions outside of the US, the case…

Why you may be paying 4x more than the patent office fee to renew

July 28, 2014

We were really glad to see esteemed Intellectual Property blog IPKat discussing RenewalsDesk and the hidden costs that some renewals companies charge to patent holders. One of the most discussed issues from the article is how you can be charged up to four times the official patent office fee by many renewal agencies. “Over eight million patents are held worldwide by many thousands of businesses. All have to pay regular renewal fees, usually every year, to the Patent Office for each…

Hidden fees: Foreign exchange and the dark side of patent renewals

July 24, 2014

Well over eight million patents are held worldwide by many thousands of businesses, but only a small percentage of these businesses truly understand what they are paying to keep their patents in force. The vast majority – especially those without in-house IP expertise – are kept in the dark when it comes to the hugely inflated fees they end up paying every year to make patent renewals. As patents are granted and maintained on a country-by-country basis, most patent holder’s…

Daylight robbery: The hidden fees charged for annual patent renewals

July 23, 2014

Over eight million patents are held worldwide by many thousands of businesses. All have to pay regular renewal fees, usually every year, to the Patent Office for each country to keep their patents in force. The amount payable is usually modest (£100 or so) – varying from country to country and with the age of the patent. But you can be charged up to 4 times the actual cost to make these payments! This extra cost quickly mounts up when…

Industry Focus: Green technology patenting

July 23, 2014

In our first Industry Focus column, RenewalsDesk looks at the thriving green technology industry and how a gold-rush on renewable energy patents could help, or hinder the future of the industry… New research by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) shows that since the turn of the millennium there has been a surge in the number of global patents being applied for worldwide within the green technology field. Applications for patents related to solar PV energy, for example, were well…

Google wages war on Patent trolls

July 22, 2014

Google has come under fire from so-called patent trolls on several occasions over the last ten years. At the start of 2014 the company was ordered to pay 1.36% of its Adwords revenue to a small business that purchased a group of patents originally filed by Lycos. Given that Adwords has been one of the most spectacular financial successes of Google this is a very important ruling. The concept of ‘patent trolling’ (i.e. purchasing patents with no aspiration to develop…

UK ditches patents quicker than most other countries

July 22, 2014

The average time that patent holders keep their patents for in the UK has fallen drastically short of countries such as Canada and Germany a new report has found. The average UK patent holder only keeps their patent for 7.6 years according to a recent study by the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO). By comparison, countries such as Germany have an average of 11.3 years, South Africa 11.1 years and India 11 years. Out of all of the countries with…

We will always tell you the patent office fee so there are no hidden fees. Ever. Email us

We will always tell you the patent office fee so there are no hidden fees. Ever.

Email us