"They are often referred to as "PATLIB centres", standing for PATent LIBrary. However, not all PATLIB centres are actually libraries."
It is worth adding that most of the resources are now online. They include the EPO's esp@cenet and the IPO's patent search services.
I first wrote about the PatLib network in PatLib Libraries in the UK on 29 Jan 2015 in NIPC Inventors' Club. In that article, I wrote:
"The Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield central libraries are linked to the British Library in a national network of Business and IP Centres. This network is sponsored by the Arts Council of England, the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Intellectual Property Office."
The first Business and IP Centre was a specialist reading room of the British Library which opened in 2006 (see "Celebrating 20 Years" on the British Library website). The first Centre outside London was in Newcastle which I discussed in NIPC Inventors' Club in BIPC Newcastle on 21 Jan 2012. These were joined by other big city central libraries in 2013 (see Enterprise and Libraries: a New National Network of Business & IP Support 6 March 2013, NIPC Inventors' Club).
I mentioned the Business and IP Centres and how they could help businesses in Northwest Wales in Whom you gonna call? IP Professionals and what they do on 2 April 2019 in NIPC Cymru:
"A network of public libraries has teamed up with the British Library's Business and IP Service 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."
M-Sparc's accession to the PatLib network was celebrated with speeches and a panel discussion by Pryderi ap Rhisiart, Nia Roberts, Sue Lawson, Pierre Oliviere, Edward Jones and Emma Richards, followed by a buffet lunch (see Iwan Pitts, M-Sparc launches North Wales Patent Library 4 June 2026, M-Sparc website).
One of the questions to the panel was "Who owns an invention made by an AI system?" That was an excellent question and one which has perplexed intellectual property offices and judges around the world. The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom ruled in Thaler v Comptroller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks [2023] UKSC 49 (20 Dec 2023) that only a natural person can apply for a patent for an invention (see The Supreme Court's Judgment in DABUS 25 Dec 2023). Most courts and patent offices around the world have reached similar decisions.
The services promised by the North Wales Patent Library are as follows:
- "information on IP including EPO resources and copies of IPO literature
- 1:1 appointment with IP advisor (appointment only)
- referrals to a patent or trade mark attorney for a 1:1 (30 min appointment only)
- referrals to other advice/service providers
- IP workshops and webinars"
This is all very promising, but in my experience of working with the Business and IP Centres in Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield over the years, the most valuable contribution of those centres is that they catalyse other activities. To start the ball rolling, I have helped Emily Roberts and her successor, Gwenllian Owen, set up and run events to celebrate World IP Day and Wales Enterprise Day and other events. I offer Initial Advice and Signposting Clinics, and I have set up EDGC/NWIP, a support group for M-SParc and the North Wales PatLib centre on LinkedIn.
Anyone wishing to discuss this article may call me on 020 7404 5252 during office hours or send me a message through my contact form at any time.
