Use

The 9 recommendations relating to the use of the IP system and the implementation timeline.

Recommendation	Implementation
Recommendation 26: The Patent Office should provide comprehensive information on how to register and use IP rights for firms registering with Companies House.	Information regarding IP is available on Companies House website on their Incorporation page; in addition all Companies House literature makes reference to trade marks and the importance of searching the trade marks register before registering a company name. Contact details for the Intellectual Property Office are also available. The Intellectual Property Office in partnership with Business Link and Companies House have launched a joint trade mark and company name search facility. This is available on the Business Link website; this facility allows SMEs to search both registers at the same time thus reducing overlap and confusion between trade marks and company names.
Recommendation 27: Improve SME business IP support by establishing formal collaboration between the Patent Office and Business Link and by conducting a pilot replicating the French ‘IP Genesis’ scheme.	Completed - Pilot provided the framework for the diagnostic tool launched Spring 2009.
Recommendation 28: Investigate how best to provide practical IP advice to UK firms operating in foreign markets, in coordination with industry bodies, the Patent Office and UK Trade and Investment.	IP Rights Primer Guides developed by UKTI and the Intellectual Property Office have been completed for Brazil, China, India, Korea and Vietnam. Guides were launched in August 2008.
Recommendation 29: The Patent Office should develop ‘Business-to-Business’ model IP licences through industry consultation, and assessment of the Lambert model licences.	Working group established. Guidance booklet "How licensing intellectual property can help your business" published July 2008 with Ministerial launch September 2008 at the WIPO conference in Cardiff. Further tools are being developed by the group.
Recommendation 30a: The Patent Office should publish and maintain an open standards web database, linked to the EPO’s esp@cenet web database, containing all patents issued under licence of right.	Complete 19 January 2009.
Recommendation 30b: The Patent Office should publish and maintain an open standards web database, linked to esp@cenet containing all expired patents.	Complete 19 January 2009.
Recommendation 31: DTI should consider whether guidance for firms on reporting of intangible assets could be improved, including the provision of model IP reports.	Review of guidance completed in Autum 2008. Updated literature is now available via the BusinessLink website. This guidance was further complemented by the launch of the Intellectual Property Office diagnostic tool in February 2009.
Recommendation 32: Form a working group with Patent Office, RDA and Business Link representation, to identify and promote best practice to maximise the use of effective schemes nationwide.	The positive reaction to the Business Link Advisor training tool has lead to preliminary work developing a second online training tool for a wider Business intermediary audience including Business Advisors in Banks and Accountants. Seminar based training has been undertake in N. Ireland and Wales, as has training to UKTI. Training in Scotland has been delivered by the IA Centre.
Recommendation 33: The Review invites the OFT to consider conducting a market survey into the UK collecting societies to ensure the needs of all stakeholders are being met.	OFT has decided not to pursue this.
Recommendation 34: Increase cooperation between the UK Patent Office, the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission to ensure that competition and IP policy together foster competitive and innovative markets for the benefit of consumers.	Regular meetings have been established.