The treatment of intellectual property rights in open innovation models: new business models for the energy transition

Abstract

The purpose of this contribution is to explore the concept of ‘open innovation’ in the context of the energy transition and the development of low carbon technologies. The chapter explores the interaction between energy law and intellectual property (IP) law in the ecosystem of the energy sector and in relation to the development of low carbon technologies. The research question investigated is how IPRs in the energy sector ecosystem are currently and should be regulated in the future as open innovation (OI) models develop. To answer this question, the chapter begins by briefly defining the concept of open innovation (Section 2), before analysing how the development of low carbon technologies is increasingly reliant on OI models (Section 3). This includes a categorisation of some existing OI models and an analysis of the legal framework that applies to them. The chapter then critically discusses the implications of OI models on IP law and energy market regulation (Section 4). In doing so, it reflects on the inter-regulation between IP law and energy law to support SDG 7 (Section 5).