Could you briefly describe your core expertise and field of activity within the Enterprise Europe Network? What are key services you offer to your clients?
My core expertise is intellectual property (IP), support to the development of start-ups including business model analysis, organization of brokerage events. Key services would be identification of intellectual property, working out IP strategy, IP consultations (general information, not legal advice), workshops for start-ups.
What does it mean to you to be a European IP Helpdesk Ambassador? And what do you like most about it?
First of all, it’s a great pleasure, but also a responsibility to deliver quality services to our clients, although most of our activity consists in quite simple rising-awareness activities. In the IP Ambassador group, I have contact with my very experienced fellow-ambassadors and thus lots of opportunities to learn from them. I think this is, what I like most about being an IP Ambassador.
How would you describe the internal interaction and cooperation with your Enterprise Europe Network colleagues?
I am in the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) for the last 15 years and I received lot of support from the network colleagues. For example, at a certain moment we were thinking about offering support to Polish companies interested in German public procurement market and we received a wide-ranging support from EEN in Munich. We would not be able to build such a service without that support. Of course, time cannot be stretched and one cannot help everybody from such a broad network, but if there is a question, you will always find somebody to help you.
In your opinion, what are current “hot” topics and questions related to Intellectual Property (IP) in your region/country?
In my opinion basic IP awareness is still the biggest issue. We still have a lot of clients committing basic mistakes like disclosure before submitting patent application or waiting with patent extension abroad until the patent is granted. I am not quite sure, if it is the situation in other regions in the EU.
What are major challenges SMEs face with regard to IP? And what kind of support is needed, you think?
I think the major challenge is still the cost of patent protection abroad, especially since we have contact with SMEs including lot of startups. What concerns support needed – of course financing, but also advisory services and information. SME Fund proposed by EUIPO is going to deliver a relief to the costs of patent protection soon by opening a new version of the instrument. We will see, how effective this support is going to be.
Phone: +48 91 449 43 91>
E-mail: tomasz.lyzwinski@zut.edu.pl