Business support for measures to cut costs of European patents

Paris, 23 October 1997- European industry representatives gave their backing at an International Chamber of Commerce conference that ended here today to European Patent Office proposals for cutting translation requirements for patents taken out in Europe, which currently must be translated into 10 languages to secure full protection in all countries.
European Patent Office President Ingo Kober put forward a package solution involving translation into all languages, first of what is termed an "enhanced abstract" and then of the patent claims when granted. Translation of the rest of the document - which can run to 100 pages - would be required only in the event of enforcement through the courts.
Mr Kober told an audience of intellectual property specialists, government patent officials and representatives of intergovernental organizations that a typical European patent cost DM22 000, with translating and validating costs amounting to 40% of this total. He noted that the European industry association, UNICE, apparently favoured an all-English approach, under which an applicant could file in any of the official EU languages, but would have to submit an English translation and stay in that language until the patentee envisaged enforcement
While declining to comment on this solution the EPO President said: "Such a radical proposal demonstrates the strength of feeling which exists in industrial circles on the language issue and reflects growing impatience with the status quo." He argued that in an increasingly global economies ease of communication and access to information were essentials, not luxuries. "It would be ostrich-like to ignore this reality".
Supporting the package solution outlined by Mr Kober, Arno Koerber, representing the Federation of German Industry, said European ind ustry was not sufficiently innovative and laboured under problems of high costs and competitiveness. He said current translation requirements for European patents had no practical value. "We are not prepared to pay for something that is useless."
Thierry Sueur, speaking for the French Employers Federation, said translation costs account for 37% of the overall costs of a patent for French companies and cost European industry FFr1.6 billion yearly. He added that only 4% of translations were actually consulted. He said filing in one of the European languages with a translation into English would be an acceptable solution.
Richard Fawcett, Chairman of the ICC Standing Group on Patents commented: "Nobody considers the package solution to be the ideal one, but it is better than nothing. Things are moving in the right direction."
Several speakers said that legal problems could arise with the package solution, and that a patent should be enforceable in a country only if it is in a language that persons in that country can understand.
Full texts of submissions to the conference are available from the ICC press office and for more information on ICC activities in this field, please see the Commission for Intellectual Property.