Luxembourg

There are many forms of Intellectual Property (IP) defense, some of which can appear unconventional or counterintuitive at first glance.

The decision to employ a defensive publication program or similar disclosure method should not be taken lightly and must consider various aspects. [Japanese Patent Law (JPL) Article 30(2)](https://www.jpo.go.jp/e/system/laws/rule/guideline/patent/tukujitu_kijun/document/index/03_0205_e.pdf)provides a similar one-year grace period after the defensive publication, during which a patent application containing prior art can still be filed. In the end, defensive publishing authorizes anyone to take your IP and use it as they please. Opting for a defensive publication instead of a patent application can be the best move in some situations. No sound IP management / protection strategy is myopic or inflexible — it must be ready to use all available tools at the appropriate times. Thus, a defensive publication can secure your freedom to operate while reducing filing, prosecution and maintenance expenses. For this disclosure to have substantive weight — especially if it is likely to provoke legal challenges — it would be wise to release it to the relevant audience through a technical or industry journal, an academic publication or a prior-art publishing service. In this example, the best defense is indeed a good offense. Though a newspaper could satisfy the needs of disclosure, the resulting defensive publication might not withstand committed opposition. If these costs noticeably outweigh the benefits of full-fledged patent protection, disclosure can be a suitable alternative. Also sometimes known as a defensive disclosure, this publication generally includes an abstract, drawings, photographs, claims, description and any other elements you would have in a patent application for a given jurisdiction. In practice, there is no official procedure for releasing a defensive publication, and any publicly accessible medium could suffice; it could be a self-printed booklet, a website blog post or a paid advertisement in a major media outlet.