Patent Information in the Netherlands

Jill Ann Hurst
date: Tuesday, September 12, 2000

The Netherlands Industrial Property Office (NIPO) and IBM Netherlands have teamed up to create the Patent Information Online (PION) System. PION allows specialists and non-specialists to search international patent data in the Netherlands. PION is based on the IBM Patent Server www.patents.ibm.com. PION is currently available to users at the NIPO library and to a select group of external users via the Internet.

Widely available via the NIPO web site is "The Patent Register", which contains data about published Dutch patent applications, Dutch patent rights and Dutch certificates from 1968 onwards. Anyone can access the data free of charge; however, all users must register to use the database. The Patent Register is available at Netherlands Industrial Property Office.

The Patent Register presents two different registration options. For users who may use the database infrequently, there is an option to use a quick registration process and receive an ID/password that can be used for only two weeks. The user can reregister to receive a new ID/password. Users of these short-term IDs have access to all of the data but cannot use the extended search screen or save queries for later use.

Users who want to have access to all of the system's functions or who might be using the system frequently can use the full registration process. This registration form requests more information. Although the form itself can be viewed in English, two drop-down menus are in Dutch. (Hint - When trying to locate your country's name in the drop-down menu, look for your country's two-letter code.)

The database itself is easy to search, but the results are in Dutch. Users who do not speak Dutch may need to use a translation program or have the information translated by a human.

Why are the Patent Register database and PION in the Netherlands important?

First, they provide access to Dutch patents. Having access to more patent data electronically helps business and technical researchers, scientists, and inventors have access to more information. Because the information is being made available freely by the government, the cost is "perfect".

Second, they demonstrate the continual need to make information available across country boundaries, acknowledging the global marketplace. Of course, other intellectual property needs to be made available across country boundaries and, to that end, we hope that the Netherlands will make trademark information available as well as general information about the country's intellectual property laws. Making that information can only help NIPO in its mission.

How can the Patent Register database be improved? That is for its users to determine, but NIPO may want to connect the database to an automatic translation program that will give non-Dutch speaking people access to the patent literature in their native language. Of course, adding images would be a wonderful feature. We'll have to wait, however, to see what NIPO has in store.