American Economic Review
ISSN 0002-8282 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7981 (Online)
Patent Quality and Examination in Europe
American Economic Review
vol. 106,
no. 5, May 2016
(pp. 193–97)
Abstract
This paper reports on effects of recent administrative reforms at the European Patent Office (EPO). In EPO-granted patents, claims numbers started to decline in 2008 when new claims fees became effective, claims sections in patents became shorter, and independent claims longer and presumably more specific. The grant rate remained at relatively low levels, but the EPO was unable to stem the use of divisional filings. The developments at the EPO point to a high private value of delay options. Delay may be achieved either by making use of explicit statutory rules or by other means, such as filing divisional applications.Citation
Harhoff, Dietmar. 2016. "Patent Quality and Examination in Europe." American Economic Review, 106 (5): 193–97. DOI: 10.1257/aer.p20161093Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- K11 Property Law
- K23 Regulated Industries and Administrative Law
- O34 Intellectual Property and Intellectual Capital
- O38 Technological Change: Government Policy