SME Intellectual Property Scoreboard

What do small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) think about Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)? That is the question addressed by the second SME Intellectual Property Scoreboard, published by EUIPO in October 2019. The goal of the study is to gain a better understanding of how EU SMEs perceive and use IPR.

SMEs are key to job creation and economic growth in the EU. Two out of three employees in the EU are employed by an SME. Furthermore, SMEs provide 57% of added value within the EU. As only 30-60% of SMEs are still in business after five years, it is in the interests of the EU economy to support SMEs in prevailing beyond the early years. Innovation is one of the main reasons why companies grow and survive.

Innovation helps small businesses thrive and grow, and so to hire more people. IP plays a crucial role in stimulating innovation by providing a mechanism that enables companies that invest time, energy and money in innovation to protect and leverage the results.

The SME Scoreboard provides pertinent, up-to-date information for decision makers looking to design policies to improve awareness and use of IPR among SMEs. The full report can be found here.