What should I remember about SME Instrument?

SME INSTRUMENT’S KEY WORDS

IP is the product of the mind or research, it is a result, a valuable asset that can be traded.
IP is a key asset of a project which brings outputs.
IPR is about commercial usage of an IP. They were designed to encourage innovators with financial incentive to stimulate creativity.
IPR is not only about the patent, it can also be copyrights, design rights, database rights, trade marks, utility models, etc.
A know-how has no IPR related, but confidential agreements and trade secret arrangements.

Why Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)?

To promote innovation by encouraging invention and creativity, increasing innovation capacity, and thereby benefitting society.
To get the legal right to prevent others from using the creation for commercial purposes for a limited period, in return for disclosing details of a new creation (so others can go further).
To avoid secrecy and enhance innovation capacity and stimulate further innovation.
To be able to prevent unauthorised commercial use by others, unless agreement reached.
To enable commercial partners to benefit from the limited monopoly and get a return on investment in building the market.

Invention IS NOT innovation

Project Outputs + Utilisation = INNOVATION

Innovation is a new (or improved) creation, which when used produced tangible benefits, satisfying needs and wants.
Innovations do not have to be commercial; it based on new products, services, organisational or business methods, improved networks and collaborations, advisory reports, etc.
The benefit (hence the impact) of an innovation does not have to be financial.
The impact of the innovation can be societal, research, environmental, technical, commercial, educational or anything that delivers a benefit or addresses a need.

⇒ The larger the benefits derived from an innovation, the larger impact.

INNOVATION POTENTIAL (Excellence)

Do the project results have the potential to deliver innovations which contribute to the expected impacts, and how much?

INNOVATION CAPACITY (Impact)

The capacity of an innovation to stimulate further innovations, and/or increase the amount of benefits delivered.
Can the results deliver benefits in areas not specifically mentioned in the call (societal, environmental, etc.).

INNOVATION PROCESS

Idea ► Market introduction ► Benefit/impact

INNOVATION MANAGEMENT (Implementation)

The management of the innovation process: activities related to understanding needs, with objective of successfully identifying new ideas, and managing them, in other to develop new products and services which satisfy these needs.
Someone must be responsible for managing all innovation related activities.

DISSEMINATION ≠ COMMUNICATION

⇒ Dissemination is the strategy to exploit the result, it goes beyond the project duration.

⇒ Communication is the delivery of this strategy for the duration of the project.

DISSEMINATION AND EXPLOITATION

It is the strategy and plan for telling the right people (dissemination), AND for gettng results used ‘exploitation), including the strategy for knowledge and data management.

COMMUNICATION

How & when & where the messages will be delivered to all targeted groups (not just potential exploiters or the public), with timeline and targets.

=> Companies have separate teams for strategy and deliver.