By Martin Banks - 30th March 2010
Currently, the filing and protection of a patent in Europe is cost prohibitive for too many SMEs
Mike Sax
A conference in Brussels was told that when it comes to encouraging and fostering innovative practice, the EU still lags behind the United States.
The one-day "Innovation Forum" event heard that "some progress" has been made in Europe towards developing innovative policies.
But one speaker, Belgian-born entrepreneur Mike Sax, said that much business dealing in Europe is "still burdened" by red tape.
Sax said he moved to America 15 years ago because he felt it had a better environment for innovation.
After moving to Oregon, he founded businesses focused on software development, health and "wellness management" and he has since become one of the world's leading developers of iPhone applications.
He said that in the past 15 years, the EU had made "some progress" towards encouraging innovation among SMEs but there were still "good reasons" why the best of European entrepreneurs will continue to move abroad.
He said, "Currently, the filing and protection of a patent in Europe is cost prohibitive for too many SMEs.
"The administrative burden for SMEs is also still too overbearing and these are issues that need addressing."
He added, "Although it is moving in the right direction, Europe is still very slow moving when it comes to encouraging innovation.
"There needs to be a stronger focus on protecting innovation and allowing the best entrepreneurial brains to be successful."
The event comes in the wake of the recent publication of the EU 2020 strategy, the successor to the Lisbon agenda, and ahead of "SME Week" in May, organised by the European commission.
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