Europe

Richard Vary, Clemens Heusch and Matthias Schneider reveal their views on component-level versus end-point licensing and Unwired Planet

Giancarlo Penza of Bugnion examines the different elements involved in establishing a FRAND licence, including NDAs, counter-offers and litigation

In Germany, inventions which are created by employees during the term of their employment, so-called service inventions, are subject to the Act on Employees' Inventions (ArbnErfG). According to the act, all rights in the invention are assigned to the employer if the employer does not release the invention to the employee.

An IP court has accepted the discovery of evidence demand made by an originator company against a generic pharmaceutical company after the court's expert panel confirmed that patent infringement had occurred, but has then rejected the originator's request for a preliminary injunction due to the so-called Bolar exemption.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, IP practitioners in Greece welcomed the new law on trademarks, under which Directive (EU) 2015/2436 was transposed into national law. There was no reason for any caution in this respect, since the implementation had been awaited since January 12 2019, which was the deadline for Greece to transpose the directive.

Under the exceptional circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the EPO has postponed all oral proceedings in opposition scheduled for the rest of the year. Only oral proceedings already scheduled to take place by videoconference or to be held by videoconference with the parties' consent will take place this year. Oral proceedings in examination are still being held by videoconference whilst oral proceedings in appeal in principle still take place as scheduled.