SMEs

The European Commission recently launched the Horizon Intellectual Property (IP) Scan service. This tailored and free-of-charge IP support service is specifically designed to help European start-ups and other SMEs to efficiently manage and valorise IP in collaborative research and innovation efforts...

A European company in the dental instruments sector was selling its product in China through a Chinese distributor when it discovered a competitor in China was offering a similar product with lower specification using an identical design. The technical manual, diagrams and parts of the competitor’s...

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force in May 2018. Almost three years later, however, many businesses are still unclear on how at risk they are to GDPR-related sanctions. The vast majority of business leaders believe that it is essential to comply with the GDPR, especially as...

Nearly all businesses in all industries and sectors possess trade secrets. Trade secrets are a valuable and highly useful form of intellectual property that are nevertheless often undervalued and overlooked by their owners. This is particularly the case in the service sector, where the relative...

If you’re a small business looking to internationalise, Access2Markets could help you. This web portal combines the Market Access Database, the EU Trade Helpdesk and much more in a single tool. Access2Markets has all you need to know about duties, taxes, product rules and requirements for all EU...

Unfair rules or decisions and discriminatory red tape can make it hard for companies in the European Union (EU) to do business in another EU country. Such issues are a particular problem for small and medium sized enterprises, which may not have the regulatory knowledge and experience or the...

Is your company looking to expand its business outside of the European Union? Then Canada is a great consideration, and has always been a natural ally for the EU. EU-Canada trade and economic activity is boosted by the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). CETA is not only one of the...

We are pleased to announce that the call for applications for the ‘Towards Green Transition’ Facility is now open. The ‘Towards Green Transition’ Facility is a new initiative to enable clusters registered at the ECCP to promote green transition skills amongst their members through technical advisory...

Creative industry goods are valuable not only for their designs, but often their trademarks too, and businesses should be aware that intellectual property rights (IPR) infringement can target either or both of these types of intangible assets. In actual cases of infringement, however, enforcement...

Clariness is an innovative SME based in Hamburg, Germany that aims to bring medical innovations to the market faster by accelerating clinical trials. EU funding has allowed Clariness to grow and rapidly expand ClinLife. ClinLife is a free and easy-to-use website that helps patients worldwide find...

As with companies in any economic sector, cosmetics firms have much to gain from early protection of their Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Registering IP with Chinese authorities and customs before beginning any type of business activity in the country could potentially save SMEs a lot of money...

The European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP) is looking for experts to support European clusters as part of the ''Towards Green Transition'' Facility. This new initiative will enable ECCP clusters to promote green transition skills amongst their members through technical advisory support by...