Companies and inventors from around the world, including Romania, filed 199,264 patent applications with the European Patent Office (EPO) last year, with the majority in the area of information technology, according to the 2024 Patent Index, published on Tuesday.According to an EPO press release, Romania submitted 63 applications for European patents (+50% compared to 2023), with the main areas being medical technology (11 applications) and IT-related areas, including information technology and IT methods for management (8). The strongest Romanian applicant was, for the second consecutive year, "Stefan cel Mare" University of Suceava.Of the total applications submitted to the EPO in 2024, computer technology, which includes areas of AI such as machine learning and pattern recognition, was the leading field for the first time, with 16 815 patent applications in 2024. Electrical machinery, apparatus, energy posted the strongest growth last year (+8.9% on 2023), driven by advances in clean energy technologies, particularly battery innovation (+24.0%).The Unitary Patent system launched in 2023 continues to gain momentum, offering innovators simpler and more accessible patent protection across 18 EU member states with a single request to the EPO. Romania will join this system starting September 1, 2024, meaning that from that date, all European patents with unitary effect will automatically cover Romania as well.According to last year's centralised data, unitary protection was requested for 25.6% of all European patents granted by the EPO in 2024, totalling over 28,000 requests - a 53% increase compared to 2023 (18,300 requests). Patentees from EPO member states had the highest uptake rate, with 36.5% of their European patents transformed into Unitary PatentsFor Romania, the acceptance rate was 52.6%, while for other regions, it was lower: South Korea (18.9%), China (17.9%), the USA (16%) and Japan (7.9%).
“Catane,” a dark comedy inspired by real events and directed by Ioana Mischie, is set to have its first special screenings in Romania after a successful festival circuit. The film had its world premiere at the IFFI Goa festival in India and was nominated this year at the Hollywood Music in Media Awards for Best […]
Romania is among the European countries where water reserves are decreasing at an alarming rate, according to an analysis carried out by researchers from University College London in collaboration with The Guardian and Watershed Investigations. Scientists analyzed data from the period 2002–2024 provided by satellites that monitor changes in the Earth's...
George Smyth, 18, went missing on a hike near Romania’s famous Bran Castle more than a week ago. On November 23, the British citizen started to suffer from hypothermia and exhaustion and called the emergency services. Trying to locate him, mountain rescue services conducted searches over the next few days but were only able to […]
Over 107,000 people in Prahova and Dâmbovița counties, in southern Romania, have been without drinking water since Friday, November 28, due to problems at the Paltinu Dam. According to local authorities, the problems are set to persist until next week. The dam registered a drop in water levels, leading to problems in the water distribution system. […]
A special ‘Silent Day’ event will be held at the Bucharest Christmas Market in Constituției Square on Wednesday, December 3, aimed at creating a quieter and more accessible environment for children with sensory disabilities. The initiative is designed to make the festive market manageable for children who may struggle with loud noise, bright lights, and […]
Romanians have the highest level of trust in others in the European Union, according to the most recent Eurostat data for the year 2024, ahead of the usual leader of the ranking, Finland. The indicator ‘trust in others’ measures a person’s trust in people they do not know on a scale from 0 (‘I...
