The Patent and Technology Observatory of the European Patent Office (EPO) presents the study “Patents and Innovation in European Universities”, which analyzes the number of patent applications filed by universities to understand how academic research is transformed into industrial property assets that reach the market.
EPO: Analysis of the Commitment to Patents in European Universities
In recent years, European universities have established themselves as key drivers of innovation, significantly increasing their capacity to patent inventions. Currently, over 10% of all patent applications submitted to the European Patent Office (EPO) come from universities, a figure that has grown considerably from 6% in 2000, highlighting the increasingly important role of academic institutions in protecting and commercializing their developments.
Specifically, the study analyzes data from over 1,200 universities over two decades and shows this significant increase in patents directly filed by universities, which rose from 20% in 2000 to 45% in 2019.
However, there are considerable differences between countries and institutions due to national regulations and the internal policies of each university, leading to significant variations in intellectual property ownership and management, primarily affecting the role of universities as patent holders. For example, in some countries, most academic patents are directly owned by universities, while in others, they are managed by the researchers themselves or by spin-outs, resulting in different approaches to exploiting these inventions.
Moreover, although Europe has a strong academic tradition, turning this research into commercial success remains one of the major challenges. The study illustrates the progress universities have made in managing their patent portfolios, increasing licenses, collaborations, and the creation of technology-based companies generated from industrial and intellectual property assets. However, the lack of integration in the European single market for research and technology limits these opportunities, and many startups with academic patents relocate to the United States in search of better conditions. For instance, 10% of European academic startups end up establishing themselves in the U.S.
The report also highlights the concentration of patent application activity in a small group of highly active universities, responsible for half of the academic patents filed. Universities such as the University of Grenoble Alpes, the Technical University of Munich, and the University of Oxford are examples of institutions leading in this field. Additionally, the importance of collaboration between universities, research organizations, hospitals, and companies is highlighted, although most of these collaborations are limited to the national level, indicating significant fragmentation in the European innovation market.
In this context, the recent creation of the Unitary Patent represents a concrete step toward overcoming these challenges and fostering collaboration between industry and academia. Initiatives like the Deep Tech Finder by the EPO, which includes nearly 900 European universities with patent applications, facilitate contact between investors and startups, promoting innovation and science-based economic growth.
More information: EPO