Editorial
M. Névant (FR), Editorial Committee
The sound of silence
The 85th Council Meeting took place last month in Helsinki. Finland is known for its breathtaking landscapes; 70% of the land is indeed covered by forests which - according to an official source[1] - are well managed! We also learnt from our Finnish colleagues that their beautiful country has 5 seasons (there are 2 winters). There are many reasons to love Finland[2] one of which is that people can listen to silence – a luxury in modern times.
During the Meeting, a video message from the President of the EPO, Mr. Campinos, was presented the text of which is reproduced on here. Mr. Campinos notably indicated that the EPO “wants to work more closely with the epi to see how we can ensure the European patent system continues to function effectively and can continue to serve our users”. A dialogue has commenced on the quality management process at the EPO (see https://patentepi.org/en/epi/news/125). While we have little doubt that epi’s voice will be heard, we wonder whether our voice will actually be listened to. We appreciate that it may be difficult for the EPO to strike an appropriate balance between their internal needs and users’ needs. We, however, believe that a sustainable patent (eco)system can no longer work without taking into account – and implementing to the extent possible – input from users.
This time of the year reminds us that the northern part of Finland (Lapland) is the home of Santa Claus. Santa will bring our readers a brand new format of epi Information (starting as of 2019) with publication dates one month earlier than the current publication dates. Your contributions for the next issue should, therefore, reach us by 14 January 2019!
The Editorial Committee sincerely wishes all our readers a Happy Christmas and a Healthy and Prosperous 2019.
- https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-46256296
- See e.g. https://www.visitfinland.com/article/greatest-things-about-finland/
