After years of negotiations, the free trade agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay) is back in the spotlight, with concrete prospects for entering into force.
Significant legislative developments took place this month in Italy concerning the implementation of the EU Design framework. The final approval of the European Delegation Law 2025 by the Senate on 11 March 2026 and the following publication of the Delegation Law (Law No. 36/2026), which took place just few days ago (25 March 2026), mark indeed a decisive step toward the incorporation of Directive (EU) 2024/2823 into the Italian legal system.
INTERPATENT wishes to inform its foreign associates that the European Patent Office (EPO) has announced an increase of several official fees relating to the European patent procedure starting from April 1, 2026. The adjustment concerns, inter alia, filing, search, examination and renewal fees. As per established practice, the new fee schedule will apply to payments made on or after the date of entry into force, while fees validly paid before that date will remain subject to the current rates.
In the world of patents, there is an almost religious dogma: absolute novelty. Under this principle, for an invention to be patentable it must never have been made public in any way — whether through a scientific article, a social media post, or even a trade fair — before the patent application filing date.
It is often said that unity is strength. In the world of innovation, this is almost a rule: collaborations between companies, technological joint ventures, and research projects between universities and private entities are important drivers of progress.
On 4 December 2025, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) delivered its judgment in the joined cases C-580/23 (Mio) and C-795/23 (Konektra), clarifying key principles governing the copyright protection of works of applied art, including functional and industrial design products.
As announced by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the SME Fund 2025 – a programme designed to support European and Ukrainian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – has reopened access to Vouchers 2 and 3.
The surname “Lamborghini” is known to the Italian public mainly for its association with the family of Ferruccio Lamborghini, the Italian entrepreneur who founded, in 1963, the famous car manufacturer company Automobili Lamborghini SpA.
As a result of Montenegro’s accession to the London Agreement on 1 August 2025, for European patents granted on or after said date and to be validated in said country, a Montenegrin language translation of the entire patent text is no longer required, provided that the EP specification is in English, but only a Montenegrin language translation of the claims will have to be provided.
A sumptuous award ceremony took place last week 23 September in Copenhagen, in partnership with the Danish Patent and Trademark Office, for the sixth edition of the DesignEuropa Awards 2025, the well-known competition, organised by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), that celebrates excellence in design among holders of Registered European Union Designs.
Participating in trade fairs and exhibitions offers a valuable opportunity for entrepreneurs to grow their business and showcase their innovations. However, disclosing an invention too early during these events can jeopardize its patentability. To be eligible for patent protection, an invention must be novel, inventive, and industrially applicable.
In recent years, the global economic landscape has undergone a quiet yet radical transformation: the focus of investment has shifted from tangible assets – machinery, real estate, infrastructure – to intangible ones such as Research & Development, intellectual property, trade secrets, know-how, software, and databases.
The European Inventor Award is a prize awarded by the EPO (European Patent Office) every two years, to honor inventors who turn their ideas into concrete solutions capable of addressing major challenges of our time.
According to data compiled by The European House – Ambrosetti – one of the leading think tanks in Italy assisting companies in establishing reports and setting up projects and events in several economic fields – the agri-food supply chain, comprising the agricultural sector, the food and beverage industry and the intermediary, distribution and restaurant sectors, has grown by 34% compared to 2015.
As you may recall, starting from June 2nd, the SME Fund – which allows to obtain vouchers that give access to a partial reimbursement of the expenses incurred for the protection of intellectual property rights – was reopened in relation to Voucher 3 (Patents) and Voucher 4 (Plant Varieties).
