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| National Library of Wales Author Ian Capper Licence CC BY-SA 2.0 Source Wikimedia Commons |
In Whom you gonna call? IP Professionals and what they do, 2 April 2019, I mentioned the British Library’s National Network of Business & IP Centres:
"A network of public libraries has teamed up with the British Library's Business and IP Centre to provide free access to databases, market research, journals, directories, articles and reports for entrepreneurs and small business owners. There is a programme of free and low-cost events and workshops on a range of topics, including business planning, marketing and intellectual property at each of the libraries. The nearest Business and IP Centre for North Wales is at Liverpool. There is also a Business and IP Centre in Birmingham."
Most of those libraries are in England, but there is one in Glasgow.
The Business and IP Centre network grew out of the European Patent Office's network of patent information centres known as PatLib. I wrote about the centres in the UK in PatLib Libraries in the UK on 29 Jan 2015 in the NIPC Inventors' Club. At that time, there were PatLib libraries in Aberdeen, Belfast, Glasgow and Llandudno Junction, as well as in Birmingham, Hull, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Plymouth, Portsmouth and Sheffield. According to the Intellectual Property Office's latest UK PatLib contact information guidance published on 19 Dec 2025, the English network has expanded but the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish centres have somehow dropped off.
That does not mean that there are no intellectual property resources or services in Wales. The National Library of Wales at Aberystwyth is a copyright library holding over 6.5 million books and periodicals. According to its website, it also offers a range of commercial services, including the following in intellectual property:
- "A free enquiries service;
- Access to free online IP databases;
- Literature on various aspects of Intellectual Property;
- Guidance on patent searching for those who are unsure where to start (subject to staff availability)
The Centre has also held clinics with specialists and if you would like us to put you in contact with an individual who specialises in the field, please contact us by completing the Online Enquiries Form."
I am also pleased to see that the National Library of Wales has celebrated World Intellectual Property Day.
Anybody wishing to discuss this article may call me on 020 7404 5252 during normal office hours or send me a message through my contact form.
