From 1 July 2021, the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI) will administer patents and designs, alongside trade marks, in the new electronic IP rights administration system. This successfully concludes a project which has been running for several years and which brings a lot of changes for the IPI and the day-to-day work of its employees. The project aimed not only to replace...

Content is constantly being posted and shared on the internet these days – whether on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. In doing so, however, other people’s photos are often being used without permission. Yet as easy as it is to post and share photos on these platforms, as easy as it is to infringe someone else’s copyright. The Copyright Act protects all photographs regardless of whether they have...

Is intellectual property protection becoming superfluous? Or will there soon be no need for patent or trade mark examiners? Following the prevalent views on the future role of artificial intelligence, one would have to answer such questions with a yes. A new series of events on the topic of ‘AI & IP’ attempts to provide a more differentiated picture, taking into account views from different...

On 23 June, Startup Days (SUD) will take place in the Kursaal in Bern. The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI) is sponsoring the event and its experts will be on hand to answer questions about protecting innovations. In a session with the world's most famous secret agent, event participants will also learn which specific aspects of protection are relevant for start-ups looking...

At its meeting on 26 May 2021, the Federal Council took note of the report (in German and French, pdf) by the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI) entitled ‘Access to non-personal data in the private sector’. The digital economy significantly contributes to the economic performance of Switzerland. To facilitate access to non-personal data held by the private sector, the report...

Under the motto ‘IP & SMEs: taking your ideas to market’, this year's World IP Day focuses on the critical role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the economy, and how they can use IP to become more competitive and resilient. SMEs in Switzerland account for 99% of all companies. For these SMEs, too, everything started with an idea that found its way to market. When such an idea is...

While the spotlight was on Covid-related projects (such as cloning of the virus, diagnostic development or vaccine production) Switzerland and Swiss biotech companies did not lose sight of other unmet medical needs and continued to invest heavily to expand their R&D and manufacturing infrastructure. Investors contributed new funds at record levels to advance the promising pipeline of the Swiss...

Statutory regulations have been in force since 1 January 2017 for products and services that producers want to promote with ‘Swissness’, such as with a Swiss cross or a ‘Swiss Made’ label, for example. The aim of these rules is to protect the ‘Swiss’ brand from misuse and secure companies that produce in Switzerland an important long-term competitive advantage. The ‘Swissness’ legislation...

The Director General of the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI) will prepare the business of the Administrative Council in this eight-member body for the next three years. The Council supervises the activities of the European Patent Office. The 38 member states of the EPO, which has its headquarters in Munich, include all EU states as well as Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Buying counterfeits costs consumers huge sums of money. The corresponding trade damages the good reputation of Swiss companies and reduces their turnover by billions each year. As a result, in 2018, Switzerland forfeited over 10,000 jobs. For the first time, a new study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has provided concrete figures on the issue. Global trade...