SMEs encouraged to align goals with effective IP approach

IP experts at Potter Clarkson are encouraging SMEs in medtech to use the next 100 days to carefully align their shifting commercial goals with an effective approach to IP or risk being left behind by innovative competitors.

The company has produced a ‘Next 100 Days’ guide, providing advice on topics including from how to go about strategic realignment and handling existing and emerging disputes, as well as considerations around protecting confidentiality amid large scale remote working.

While resources are currently constrained and wet-lab work halted in many organisations, Potter Clarkson claims longer term innovations in the medtech sector are likely to be defined by the work done over the weeks and months ahead.

Sara Holland, patent attorney and medical technology specialist at Potter Clarkson said this means businesses and individuals should act now to put themselves and their innovations in the strongest position to thrive in the aftermath of the current crisis. 

She says: “The world needs the sector to innovate us out of the current situation and those companies that are directly involved in attempting to end the pandemic with a vaccine are under particular scrutiny. But all companies in the med-tech sector are facing a changed future R&D and trading landscape as COVID-19 inevitably leaves behind permanent scars, for better or worse.  

“Innovation and adaptation are key in determining who emerges into this changed world in the strongest position, and the decisions companies and individuals make now are likely to be hugely significant for the success of their R&D projects.  

“As we enter a new economic reality, many innovators will need to review and re-prioritise their business goals. It’s vital that IP strategies adapt accordingly to best support these new goals. The starting point for this should be a thorough assessment of their current IP position that takes into account everything from their existing assets and current innovation pipeline through to the potential impact of the new R&D and trading environment on their resources and stakeholders. Companies will also want to give particular consideration to whether any of their innovations could be susceptible to Crown Use regulations, whereby the government can step in to use a patent without the consent of the patent holder.

“Having completed this audit phase, they can then seek to consolidate their IP position so as to ensure they are getting the most from their IP assets, supporting and enabling the all-important future planning needed to help them take advantage of opportunities to innovate.

“As the immediate challenges begin to subside and we seek a new, sustainable normality, the stakes couldn’t be higher.

“As a key driver of innovation, the effective use of IP rights will be hugely important. In the UK alone, IP-intensive industries account for one in three jobs, and over 40% of GDP, making them of key strategic value to the overall health of the economy. 

“We encourage all businesses and individuals in the sector to seize the opportunity to optimise their IP strategies, in order to safeguard their assets and to ensure future innovation projects are on a pathway to success.”