“Patents + 2024”: incentives for the economic exploitation of patents
“Patents + 2024” is a measure for micro enterprises and SMEs, with the aim of helping them to enhance and economically exploit the patents granted – or patent applications pending – on national and international markets, thus improving their competitive strength.
The non-repayable grant is aimed at the purchase of specialized external services, useful for the economic enhancement of the patent/s for industrial invention in terms of profitability, productivity and market development.
Let’s see together the details of the call, who are the beneficiaries and how to submit the application.
The Coscia Law Firm can help you verify the requirements for participation and prepare all the necessary documentation. You can contact us, writing an e-mail to info@studiolegalecoscia.it.
Patents + 2024: what is it about?
The “Patent + 2024” announcement is promoted by the UIBM (Italian Patent and Trademark Office) of the MIMIt and managed by Invitalia.
It is a measure that provides for the granting of non-repayable incentives to companies, intended to purchase specialized services, necessary to enhance and economically exploit patents on the national and/or international market.
These services must concern:
- Design, engineering and industrialization. Particularly:
- feasibility study (technical specifications with related documents, identification of materials, definition of production cycle, product layout);
- production design;
- study, design and engineering of the prototype;
- creation of firmware for numerical control machines for the production cycle;
- analysis and definition of the software architecture only if related to the process that is the subject of the patent application or the patent, excluding the creation of the code itself;
- production tests;
- product or process certifications strictly connected to the patent that is the subject of the application.
- Organization and development:
- organization of production processes;
- analysis for the qualitative and quantitative definition of the new geographic and sectorial markets;
- definition of the communication strategy, promotion and supervision of the distribution channels.
- Technology transfer:
- preparation of confidentiality agreements;
- preparation of patent licensing agreements;
- costs of collaboration contracts between SMEs and research institutes universities (sponsored research agreements).
At the time of submitting the application, the companies concerned must attach the estimates of the companies or professionals they trust, who will provide the services indicated above.
For the purposes of the admissibility of the enhancement project:
- it cannot be based on a single service;
- there must be at least one service in Macroarea A;
- the amounts requested for the services relating to Macroareas B and C, as a whole, cannot exceed 40% of the total amount of the requested plan.
Who are the recipients?
The concessions are aimed at micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, registered in the italian Business Register, with registered and operational headquarters in Italy, which possess at least one of the following requirements:
- holders or licensees of a patent for industrial invention granted in Italy after 1 January 2023;
- holders of a italian patent application for industrial invention, filed after 1 January 2022, with a search report with a “non-negative” outcome;
- holders of a patent granted by the EPO and validated in Italy after 1 January 2023;
- holders of a European patent application or an international patent application, filed after 1 January 2022, with a search report with a “non-negative” outcome, which claims the priority of a previous national patent application.
Furthermore, they must be in full and free exercise of their civil rights, not be in voluntary liquidation or subject to bankruptcy proceedings.
How are the incentives paid out?
The incentives – granted under the de minimis regime – are disbursed in the form of a non-repayable capital contribution, up to a maximum of € 140,000.00, which cannot exceed 80% of the eligible costs.
The limit is raised to:
- 85% of the eligible costs, in the case of companies in possession of gender equality certification;
- 100%, for beneficiary companies, at the time of submitting the application, were joint owners – with a Public Research Body (University, Research Institutes and IRCCS) – of the patent application or patent issued or holders of an exclusive license having as its object a patent issued to one of the aforementioned public bodies, already transcribed at the UIBM, without territorial extension constraints.
If the application is accepted, Invitalia will decide at its discretion the amount granted for each of the individual services that will be provided, also communicating the total amount of the concessions granted.
How is the application presented?
Interested companies can submit the application form starting from 12:00 to 18:00 on October 29, 2024, exclusively online, on the special web page prepared by Invitalia), which contains all the instructions to follow (click here to access).
There is no deadline, but it is possible to participate until all available resources are exhausted.
Our advice, therefore, is to verify that you possess the required requirements and prepare all the necessary documentation weeks in advance, to be able to quickly send the request as early as October 29, 2024, as the time slot will only be 6 hours, due to exhaustion of available resources.
To be sure to carefully analyze all the details, without neglecting anything and without making mistakes that could compromise the success of the application, we advise you to rely on experts in the sector and not to proceed in complete autonomy.
We at Coscia Law Firm, for years, have been supporting startups and SMEs in their path of growth and affirmation in the market, and we can help you in the presentation of the application. Contact us for a consultancy by e-mail: info@studiolegalecoscia.it
