ABSTRACT
Blockchain is regarded as a game changer in the IT world as it allows to record and exchange information in a decentralized manner on an unprecedented level. Since the introduction of the technology more than a decade ago, there is hardly any industry that is not wondering about its applicability to their fields. Intellectual property (IP) is not an exception. IP scholars, practitioners, and policymakers actively explore the possibility to register, govern, manage, and enforce IP rights via blockchains.
In particular, blockchains may permit to increase the visibility and tradability of IP assets, by developing so-called blockchain-based IP marketplaces. Whereas several IP rights are subject to registration (such as patents) and registering offices maintain IP databases, such registers are often territorial in nature and only serve the disclosure function. Blockchain-based IP marketplaces aim to not only increase the visibility of IP assets and disclose related information but also allow IP owners to trade their intangible assets. Thus, such marketplaces can be instrumental in facilitating IP transactions. Even though the development of such marketplaces hypothetically has multiple advantages, their introduction is not without legal challenges which are extensively analyzed in this paper.
In this paper we focus predominantly on the use of blockchains in facilitating patent transactions. In particular, we (1) explore the core prerequisites of establishing patent transactions; (2) assess whether patent registers disclose sufficient information to third parties to establish patent transactions; and (3) evaluate whether and to what extent blockchains can facilitate patent exchanges in an efficient and lawful manner, by reviewing and critically analyzing currently available blockchain patent marketplaces (such as IPwe).
Gorbatyuk, Arina and Gils, Thomas, Patent Transactions and the Use of Blockchain Technology (September 12, 2022).
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