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From patent renewals to applications survival: do portfolio management strategies play a role in patent length?

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Author Info
Nicolas van Zeebroeck () (Centre Emile Bernheim, Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels.)

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Abstract

The decision of firms to renew their patents is largely assumed to be the result of a careful valuation exercise to balance their expected revenues with renewal fees. This article extends this line of reasoning to all patent applications filed to the EPO over a 20 years period and analyzes with a survival time model the determinants of their maintenance throughout their life, from filing to withdrawal, refusal or lapse. The results first show that the classical patent value proxies (families, claims, IPC classes and forward citations) constitute strong predictors of the entire length of patent rights and even more so before their grant than after, suggesting that the length of an application, even non granted, is indicative of its expected private value to the firm. They suggest that the IP management strategies of the firms aiming at building large portfolios or families to protect their inventions make them less selective in their renewal decisions. Finally, the results suggest that even the length of non granted applications (i.e. the duration of their examination) is significantly influenced by factors relating to their scope and importance and to the patenting strategy of the firms and is therefore partly in control of the applicant, particularly through the PCT option and the filing of divisionals.

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File URL: http://www.solvay.edu/EN/Research/Bernheim/documents/wp09028.pdf
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File Function: First version, 2009
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Publisher Info
Paper provided by Université Libre de Bruxelles, Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, Centre Emile Bernheim (CEB) in its series Working Papers CEB with number 09-028.RS.

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Length: 28 pages
Date of creation: Jul 2009
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Handle: RePEc:sol:wpaper:09-028

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Related research
Keywords: Patent length; Patent value; Renewals; Patent portfolio management; Survival Time Analysis;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
O31 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Technological Change - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
O34 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Technological Change - - - Intellectual Property Rights
O50 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - General

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    Other versions:
  3. Eugenio Archontopoulos & Dominique Guellec & Niels Stevnsborg & Bruno van Pottelsberghe & Nicolas van Zeebroeck, 2006. "When small is beautiful: measuring the evolution and consequences of the voluminosity of patent applications at the EPO," Working Papers CEB 06-019.RS, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, Centre Emile Bernheim (CEB). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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