Intellectual property (IP)

Below are the most critical aspects related to intellectual property (IP) in Horizon Europe agreements and should not be considered exhaustive. Applicants should pay close attention to Article 16 (IP rights) and specific rules in Annex 5 of the Horizon Europe Agreement related to IP rights. Please contact your own legal services for specific guidance.

Intellectual property management in Horizon Europe agreements

• Horizon Europe can foster commercial and economic benefits from research and innovation (R&I) initiatives.
• Horizon Europe rules on the promotion and dissemination of project results include provisions on protecting IP rights.
• Horizon Europe beneficiaries are expected to use the results of their work, or have them used by another entity.
• Beneficiaries must adequately protect their results, taking into account possible commercial opportunities and other legitimate interests.

Key terms^{Footnote 1}

• Communication: Promoting and communicating your activities and results to multiple audiences.
• Dissemination: Providing your knowledge and results free of charge for others to use.
• Exploitation:^{Footnote 2} Using results in a concrete way for either commercial, societal or political purposes, or sharing the data with stakeholders.

The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO)

CIPO grants IP rights and provides education services on IP across Canada. Their mandate also includes increasing awareness, knowledge, and effective use of IP by Canadians.

Comparing IP requirements for Canadian grants versus Horizon Europe grants

• Beneficiaries own the results of Horizon Europe projects.
• Horizon Europe has strict provisions for the use of results.

Steps—IP rights throughout the life of your project

1. At the start of your application

• Define existing IP used in the R&I cooperation.
• Look at the patent landscape and/or other relevant IP rights. The CIPO offers guidance on developing an IP strategy.
• Look at opportunities and risks of sharing knowledge with consortium partners.
• Check whether default Horizon Europe IP rules or other relevant rules are suitable.

2. During your project

• Consider existing and potential tools for knowledge creation and management.
• Identify and discuss possible ways to protect IP.

3. At the end of your project

• Determine how you will use the results.
• Look at IP ownership arrangements and responsibilities, such as defining the contributions of joint owners.
• Consider licensing agreement and compensation options for the use of IP resulting from the project.

Key IP management provisions in Horizon Europe agreements

Horizon Europe Grant Agreements include default IP management rules, on which project consortia can elaborate in the consortium agreement. These provisions include:

• Obligations to protect. Beneficiaries must adequately protect their results—for an appropriate period and with appropriate territorial coverage—if protection is possible and justified.
• Obligations to disseminate. Horizon Europe follows the "Open Science" approach: Spreading knowledge as soon as it's available. Beneficiaries should make their scientific publications available as open access publications and openly grant access to their data.
• Obligations to use. Beneficiaries must use their results, either directly or indirectly, through another entity for up to four years after the end of the project. If results are not used within one year of the end of the project, beneficiaries must use the Horizon Europe Results Platform to find interested parties to use them (unless agreed in writing with the granting authority). This does not need to be commercial use and can include the dissemination of results.
• Rules & procedures related to ownership / joint ownership. Beneficiaries own the results of their Horizon Europe projects. Article 16 of the Grant Agreement sets out the rules related to joint ownership. Joint ownership must be agreed upon in writing and clearly set out in its terms.
• Rules related to access rights. Project partners must create a list of background IP that they will bring to the project, as well as specific IP to exclude from it.

For more information

• Your guide to IP management in Horizon Europe (in English only)
• Communication, dissemination and exploitation: what is the difference and why they all matter (in English only)
• Protecting Your IP in the European Union
• Canadian Intellectual Property Office
• EU IP Helpline (in English only)
• Horizon Europe Agreement (in English only)
• CIPO IP Academy