Mar 19, 2026
On 19 March 2026, we attended an IPR webinar hosted by the European IP Helpdesk, and we’re sharing our key takeaways with you. We’ve distilled the most relevant and practical insights so you can apply them directly to your project, or, if you prefer, you can simply reach out and we’ll take care of it for you.
If you are familiar with Horizon Europe projects, you already know that there is a legal obligation in the Grant Agreement to protect, disseminate and exploit results, all at the same time.
One of the most common misconceptions is to think that these objectives are not compatible.
But they are not only compatible; they are essential and mandatory.
The key message from this session was clear: the real challenge is how to combine Open Science and IPR strategically and (most importantly) adapt this balance to your project goals and objectives.
Why Open Science and IPR must work together in EU Projects
Our first key takeaway: Open Science and IPR are not contradictory, they must coexist. The real value lies in combining both strategically to maximise the value, impact and uptake of your project results.
A strong Horizon Europe project does not choose between openness or protection; it uses both as complementary tools.
Building a balanced IPR and Open Science strategy from day one
The key to combining Open Science and IPR is to design a balanced strategy from the very beginning of the project and continuously refine it throughout its lifecycle.
This strategy should carefully combine:
Openness (to support dissemination, collaboration and visibility)
Protection (to enable exploitation, licensing and commercialisation)
There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Your strategy must be tailored to:
The nature of your results
Your project objectives
Your exploitation pathways (uptake, licensing, collaboration, market deployment)
Open Access does not mean Open Use
Under Horizon Europe all peer-reviewed scientific publications must be open access, typically shared via repositories such as Zenodo or institutional archives, and authors retain rights and apply licenses (e.g. Creative Commons). Similarly, Open Data means that datasets are made available for access and reuse.
However, openness does not eliminate intellectual property rights. Results can still be protected, and their use may be limited depending on the type of rights attached. Copyright, patents, database rights or trademarks may all apply, even when content is publicly available.
In practice, this means that while your results may be accessible to the research community, they are not necessarily free for any type of use—especially commercial use. Open access does not imply giving up ownership, but rather granting controlled reuse under defined conditions.
“Protect first, publish second”: A key principle in Horizon Europe
One of the most important principles in intellectual property management is: “Protect first, publish second.” This means that intellectual assets (patents, copyrights, trade secrets) should be secured before any public disclosure.
This is why early planning is critical. Your exploitation strategy is not something to define at the end, it must be planned from the start and refined during the project. Before publishing, always ask yourself:
Is there anything patentable?
Have all owners agreed on the dissemination?
Patents as a tool for both protection and knowledge dissemination
Patents are often seen only as a protection mechanism, but they also play a key role in knowledge dissemination. While patents grant exclusive commercial rights (typically for 20 years), they also:
Become publicly available 18 months after filing
Include detailed technical descriptions, drawings and claims
Serve as a valuable source of knowledge for the research community
This means that patents contribute to both:
✔ Protection of innovation
✔ Dissemination of technical knowledge
Defensive Publications: A strategic alternative to patents
Defensive publications can be a powerful part of your dissemination and exploitation strategy, if used intentionally.
A defensive publication consists of publicly disclosing technical details of an invention to ensure it becomes prior art, preventing others from patenting it. This approach is often used when:
The cost of patenting is too high
The technology is not core to your business strategy
There is no clear commercialisation pathway
This way, it ensures freedom to operate, it keeps knowledge in the public domain and prevents competitors from obtaining exclusive rights. However, this must be planned strategically, not done accidentally. If you choose this route, ensure that the publication is:
Publicly accessible
Indexed and searchable
Detailed enough to block patentability
Many large organisations use defensive publications systematically, reserving patents only for high-value innovations.
So, what should you take away from this?
To wrap up, the key idea we want you to take away is openness and protection are tools, not ends in themselves. They should be used deliberately, depending on what you want to achieve with each result: whether it is dissemination, collaboration, uptake, licensing or commercialisation.
There is no single formula that works for all projects. Each result may require a different approach, and your role is to find the right balance between openness and protection to maximise impact.
And if there is one final takeaway: don’t treat Open Science and IPR as separate worlds. Treat them as complementary levers to maximise the value of your project results.
And most importantly, don’t do this alone. Having the right expertise makes a significant difference. At Blue Ocean, we support projects in designing and implementing tailored IPR, dissemination and exploitation strategies, ensuring compliance while maximising impact.
If you want to get it right from the beginning, feel free to reach out.