Introduction

In 2024, the Directorate General of Industrial Property (DGPI) - Italian Patent and Trademark Office (UIBM) of the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (MIMIT) continued its activities along the lines set out in the ”Lines of intervention on Industrial Property for the 2021-2023 period”, in the firm belief that the transfer to industry of the results of investments in research and innovation must be encouraged, while also exploring avenues to recognise industrial property rights, as these factors that can generate an important competitive advantage for the rights holders. To foster the competitiveness of our production apparatus, we need a more accessible and efficient system for protecting Industrial Property rights (IPR), one that can tackle the daily challenges facing industry and SME by the digital age and the technological revolution.

2024 was the year that saw the enactment of the "Made in Italy” Law No. 102 of 24 July 2023. On the one hand, the new law has introduced important innovations to combat counterfeiting, while on the other it provides for the refinancing of the Voucher 3i facilitation measure - Invest in Innovation - aimed at the provision of specialised patent consultancy services which are no longer aimed exclusively at innovative startups but will also be extended to the much wider universe of micro-enterprises.

The 'Made in Italy' law also concerns itself with handing down and preserving the oldest traditions and typical products of a given region, by providing incentives linked to the new European system of recognition of geographical indications for craft and industrial products, as per EU Regulation No. 2411/2023, which will be operational at EU level from 1 December 2025. To this end, in order to adapt the national legal system, the Government, at the proposal of Italy's Ministry for Enterprises and Made in Italy, amended the 2024 European Delegation Bill to include the new Article 25, setting the criteria to define the new administrative procedure for the receipt of applications and registration of this new Industrial Property title. Early in 2025, the DGPI-UIBM started work on drafting the resulting legislative decree.

On incentives for small and medium-sized enterprises/businesses, financial support for the recognition of Industrial Property rights was also assured in 2024, with a total budget of 32 million euros stanced to finance the 3 annual calls relating to the financial measures "Brevetti+" [Patents+], "Marchi+" [Trademarks+] and "Disegni+" [Designs+].

In addition, two important exhibitions were held at Palazzo Piacentini, MIMIT's headquarters, to promote and enhance the heritage of Industrial Property rights:  'Identitalia', dedicated to a selection of over 100 iconic Italian brands that have shaped and continue to shape the country's history, and the exhibition 'The Italy of Patents: Successful Inventions and Innovations'. Both initiatives were organized to celebrate the 140th anniversary of the founding of UIBM.

DGPI-UIBM, in addition to laying the foundations for the implementation of the new Industrial Property Information System, has continued to ensure the full operability and continuity of digital services to guarantee  the proper management of administrative procedures within its remit, which in 2024 saw over 169 thousand filings for Industrial Property rights and related requests, as well as nearly 130 thousand final orders issued by the UIBM.