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IP Law in Hungary – FinTech is the Buzzword of 2017

IP Law in Hungary – FinTech is the Buzzword of 2017

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Creative industries have continued their exponential growth, steadily carving out a larger and larger slice of the market pie. This steady trend brings some changes, however, to their legal needs and expectations.

FinTech and Mobile App Development as the Artery of Copyright 

First, let us look at the current state and the trends of the past year in Copyright Law in Hungary. 

The most prominent trends that may be observed as being on the rise are these: the market is moving away from litigation and towards out-of-court solutions; assignments regarding start-up companies’ needs from the development of a product idea all the way to execution are steadily increasing; and there’s a marked rise in legal services provided to companies developing mobile and web-based applications and various other companies and ventures developing smart technology. 

The most prevalent increase we’ve witnessed this past year is in the field of “FinTech” – the industry sector of companies developing innovative technological solutions which act as intermediaries to the delivery of financial services – the growth of which is currently also being considerably expedited via the provision of financial aid by the government. This cutting-edge and heavily innovative field requires precise legal work because of its deep and diverse connections with Banking and Finance Law, Consumer Law, and various confidentiality concerns, while also posing a wide array of criteria to be met regarding Data Management regulations, all of which are interconnected with the copyright aspects of FinTech services. Sadly, most companies still don’t take copyright into sufficient consideration, which is a deficiency we intend to remedy. 

Trademarks – Decreasing Litigation 

This past year we’ve noted in our Trademark Law practice that trademark opposition procedures and various other out-of-court procedures pursued before the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office continue to be more prevalent and widespread than court proceedings, although we must note that despite the ratio being in favor of out-of-court proceedings, civil litigation cases are still fairly common.

The number of trademark applications and trademark research requests continues to rise, with the filings for national trademark applications traditionally outweighing those of community trademarks, which has, in the last few years, remained fairly standard. In 2017 we expect these tendencies to continue.

Unified Patent Court – Ready, Steady, Go!

In the field of Patent Law, the ratio of litigation to out-of-court settlements and other non-conflictive solutions is relatively high in comparison to the other branches. This ratio has however remained fairly constant over the last few years, and although we hold it as a tendency, it is relatively unchanging. However, we must make an important distinction within the broader category of patents to better reflect on their litigation ratios.

Some patents are specifically applied for as a future protective measure to a product, inherently meant to provide a market edge by way of exclusion, where the patent rights holder expects his/her patent to be infringed upon in the future. Because of this, the ratio of litigation being high is no surprise here. Other patents are applied for to serve more as a mark of quality, where the rights holder uses the patented nature of the product not only as an excluding measure but also as a marketing tool; in this subdivision the litigation ratio is significantly lower than in the first category.

The other dominant tendencies in Patent Law are, firstly, the observable rises in assignments regarding patent license contracts’ drafting, and secondly, the growing number of clients inquiring about the soon-to-be-active Unified Patent Court (UPC) and seeking to prepare early for the UPC’s practice in order to gain a strong market.

What’s to be Expected

Looking back on this past year and its tendencies, we expect nothing but the marked and continuous rise of both the creative industries and IP Law in 2017, with the economic importance of all pertinent legal fields steadily increasing.

By Ildiko Komor Hennel, Managing Partner, Sar and Partners Attorneys at Law

This Article was originally published in Issue 4.2 of the CEE Legal Matters Magazine. If you would like to receive a hard copy of the magazine, you can subscribe here.

Hungary Knowledge Partner

Nagy és Trócsányi was founded in 1991, turned into limited professional partnership (in Hungarian: ügyvédi iroda) in 1992, with the aim of offering sophisticated legal services. The firm continues to seek excellence in a comprehensive and modern practice, which spans international commercial and business law. 

The firm’s lawyers provide clients with advice and representation in an active, thoughtful and ethical manner, with a real understanding of clients‘ business needs and the markets in which they operate.

The firm is one of the largest home-grown independent law firms in Hungary. Currently Nagy és Trócsányi has 26 lawyers out of which there are 8 active partners. All partners are equity partners.

Nagy és Trócsányi is a legal entity and registered with the Budapest Bar Association. All lawyers of the Budapest office are either members of, or registered as clerks with, the Budapest Bar Association. Several of the firm’s lawyers are admitted attorneys or registered as legal consultants in New York.

The firm advises a broad range of clients, including numerous multinational corporations. 

Our activity focuses on the following practice areas: M&A, company law, litigation and dispute resolution, real estate law, banking and finance, project financing, insolvency and restructuring, venture capital investment, taxation, competition, utilities, energy, media and telecommunication.

Nagy és Trócsányi is the exclusive member firm in Hungary for Lex Mundi – the world’s leading network of independent law firms with in-depth experience in 100+countries worldwide.

The firm advises a broad range of clients, including numerous multinational corporations. Among our key clients are: OTP Bank, Sberbank, Erste Bank, Scania, KS ORKA, Mannvit, DAF Trucks, Booking.com, Museum of Fine Arts of Budapest, Hungarian Post Pte Ltd, Hiventures, Strabag, CPI Hungary, Givaudan, Marks & Spencer, CBA.

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