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European prior art ruling signals shift in patent strategy

By Inbar Preiss ( July 7, 2025, 14:45 GMT | Comment) -- European companies that want to apply for a patent — especially in the chemical and materials sectors — may need to file their request earlier, and reconsider relying on secrecy as a long-term intellectual property strategy, following a ruling by European Patent Office, experts say. The EPO's Enlarged Board of Appeal — which ensures the uniform application of the European Patent Convention — last week ruled that a commercially available product can qualify as prior art, even if its internal structure cannot be fully analyzed or reproduced.European companies that want to apply for a patent — especially in the chemical and materials sectors — may need to file their request earlier, and reconsider relying on secrecy as a long-term intellectual property strategy, following a ruling by European Patent Office, according to experts....

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