What is a Patent?

Inventions which represent clear technical innovations have the possibility of being protected by a patent. These inventive solutions must be commercially usable, and are investigated by our examination procedure for their patentability. If a patent is issued, it is valid for up to 20 years. There is no such thing as a "world patent"; patents only apply nationally. Nevertheless, thanks to an international agreement (Patent Co-operation Treaty, PCT) , it is possible for simultaneous protection to be obtained in up to 139 countries via the Austrian Patent Office.