Europe has no shortage of innovation. It is about the ability to convert that innovation into economic value quickly enough. With the new European Innovation Act, the European Commission wants to change that. An important part of the proposal is a new way of looking at intellectual property: from an instrument to protect innovation to an asset that can also contribute to financing, commercialisation and growth.
On 9 September 2026, the European Commission presented its proposal for the European Innovation Act. The ambition is clear: innovative European companies should be able to develop, finance and scale up their ideas more easily within Europe. According to the European Commission, the package can, among other things, help unlock up to €10.2 billion in additional funding annually.
From European innovation to European growth
Europe is one of the world’s strongest regions in terms of research, science and technology. Yet many European innovations are eventually commercialized or scaled up elsewhere.
That is exactly the gap that the European Innovation Act aims to narrow:
Research → innovation → intellectual property → financing → commercialisation → growth
Today, the emphasis in many companies is mainly on protecting an invention, brand or design. The European Commission wants to look more explicitly at IP as an economic value that can be used to finance growth and bring innovation to the market.
IP becomes more than protection
One of the most striking elements of the proposal is the development of a common European framework for the valuation of intellectual property.
This is important because the economic value of a patent cannot always be easily determined today. For a bank, investor or other financier, a patent is also much less tangible than, for example, real estate, machinery or financial assets.
The European Innovation Act aims to improve this situation.
A better and more uniform valuation of IP can make it easier for companies to use their intellectual property in:
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funding rounds
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Investor talks
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IP-backed financing
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licensing agreements
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sale or transfer of technology
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strategic partnerships
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M&A due diligence
This creates an interesting shift:
A patent is not only a legal right to protection. It can also be a business asset with economic value.
A European market for intellectual property
The Commission is also proposing a digital European marketplace for intellectual property. This should better connect IP buyers and sellers.
This may be relevant, for example, for a technology that a company does not want to develop further itself, but for which there is a commercial application elsewhere in Europe.
A better European infrastructure around IP can therefore create a new dynamic around licensing, technology transfer and IP commercialization.
This is also relevant for SMEs
The discussion about innovation policy is often associated with universities, high-tech companies and large R&D organizations. But the potential impact is much broader.
An SME can also have a valuable IP portfolio:
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a proprietary technology
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a patent portfolio
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a strong brand
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registered designs
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software and know-how
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exclusive technology under license
The question then no longer becomes just: “Is our innovation sufficiently protected?”
But also: “What economic value is there in our intellectual property and how can we make better use of that value?”
This requires a more strategic approach to IP.
From IP protection to IP strategy
For companies, this development means that IP can be viewed less and less as a separate legal domain.
A good IP strategy starts with the business strategy:
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What technology are we developing?
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Which markets do we want to serve?
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Which innovations are strategically important?
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Which competitors should we stay ahead of?
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Which IP do we want to exploit ourselves?
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Which IP can we license?
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Which IP can contribute to the financing of our growth?
This shifts the role of IP from retrospective protection to strategic support for the company.
What does this mean for companies?
The European Innovation Act is still a proposal from the European Commission today and still has to go through the European legislative process. It is therefore not a new obligation that companies must comply with immediately. Yet the direction is already very clear.
Companies would therefore do well to look at their IP portfolio not only from the perspective of registration and protection, but also from the perspective of value creation.
A number of questions are becoming increasingly relevant:
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What intellectual property do we actually have? Many companies have a larger IP portfolio than they realize.
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Which IP is strategically important? Not every patent or trademark has the same economic significance.
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How strong is our protection? Protection must be in line with the markets, technology and competitive strategy.
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Which IP can be commercialized? Not all technology necessarily has to be exploited yourself.
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Which IP can contribute to funding or business value? A well-constructed and documented IP portfolio can become increasingly relevant in conversations with investors and financiers.
An interesting evolution for IP
The European Innovation Act can thus accelerate a significant change in the European IP market.
The traditional IP approach was mainly:
inventing → protecting → managing → defending
The new European vision shifts towards:
inventing → protecting → valuing → financing → commercializing → growing
That is a fundamentally different way of looking at intellectual property.
For innovative companies, this means that IP can not only be a shield against competitors, but also a lever for growth.
This is precisely where an important opportunity lies: companies that are already thinking strategically about their intellectual property today will be better prepared for a European economy in which innovation, IP and finance are increasingly intertwined.
Oryon is closely following the further development of the European Innovation Act and its impact on European IP practice. Our IP specialists will be happy to work with you to determine what your intellectual assets are and how you can not only have them protected, but also valued and used commercially.
