The European Commission has proposed a new European Innovation Act intended to help Europe’s most innovative ideas be developed, financed and scaled up within the EU. The proposal aims to reduce barriers that currently prevent European innovators from turning research and creativity into economic success at home.
What the Commission announced
The proposal targets two main challenges in the EU innovation system. First, it seeks to improve access to financing for innovative companies by promoting a common EU framework to value intellectual property, creating a digital marketplace to connect buyers and sellers of intellectual property, and offering expert support to help companies bring their ideas to market.
The Commission estimates that these measures could unlock around €10.2 billion per year in additional financing and generate approximately €35 million in administrative cost savings.
Second, the European Innovation Act would establish a common approach for research and development (R&D) procurement. The aim is to help new technologies reach the market faster and to make it easier for public buyers across different EU countries to jointly carry out R&D procurements. The Commission projects that companies could expect about €25.92 billion in additional annual profits under this approach, while public buyers could save around €1 billion per year.
Why it matters
The Commission frames the act as part of a broader competitiveness agenda, called the competitiveness compass, which seeks to strengthen the EU’s long-term competitiveness, prosperity and technological sovereignty. By standardising approaches to intellectual property valuation and cross-border public procurement for R&D, the proposal aims to keep more innovation development and commercialisation within the EU.
What happens next
The proposal on the European Innovation Act will proceed through the EU’s legislative process. In parallel, the Commission said it will advance a separate proposal on regulatory sandboxes aimed at helping innovators accelerate the conversion of innovative ideas into market-ready solutions.
Further documents linked to the proposal include a press release, questions and answers, and a factsheet published by the Commission.
Source: European Commission press release
