Small Nordic Enterprises - developing IPR in global competition

This paper presents the results of a pan-Nordic study to explore how small and medium-size enterprises use IPR. It is a pilot study that demonstrates a commonly developed approach designed to overcome the barriers that hinder study of IPR use by small firms. The pilot study focuses particularly on patenting, based on the common approach linking national business registries with patent applicants. This is the first cross-country project of its kind to develop and execute such an exercise. It applies available definitions and approaches to improve comparability in the Nordic area and with other efforts (such as the OECD patent name harmonization activity). The intention is to demonstrate how this cross-country approach can address the needs of policymakers in the Nordic countries for reliable and comparative information about IPR use among the smallest firms.