In 2001, as an e-government pioneer, the IPI started offering a free online register at www.swissreg.ch. This IP rights database became truly user friendly after a complete overhaul in July 2006. From then on, it was easy to find information on filed or registered IP rights in Switzerland. A lot of the time, it was no longer necessary to conduct further research or order an extract from the register.

From 1 July 2008, the platform also became the official organ of publication, replacing the printed publication organs.

Over the past five years, the database has recorded between 1.2 and 1.7 million visits per year. Swissreg is used by lawyers, entrepreneurs, developers and creative professionals. They use the database to gather initial information: for example, to find out which trade marks have already been registered for a particular term, who owns a particular patent, or how much longer protection is valid for.

Swissreg isn’t a professional search tool, however. For instance, you can’t use it to conduct a patent search on the state of the art or to get information on all newly registered trade marks that could be confused with your own trade mark. In these cases, you would generally order a professional search or monitoring from a provider of patent and trade mark searches.

The trade mark register is the most used register by far. It’s not surprising as the trade mark is the most used IP right. Some very popular search terms in the last five years were ‘apple’, ‘swiss’ and ‘gourmet’. ‘Swiss’ is actually an extremely common element in trade marks protected in Switzerland – a search for active Swiss trade marks with the word ‘swiss’ produces 3,600 results.

In the patent database, the top two search terms were ‘Abdeckvorrichtung’ (covering device) and ‘Steinträger’ (stone support). The top ten also included ‘location’ (rental), ‘Brillenscharnier’ (glasses hinge), ‘Türstopper’ (door stopper) and ‘pedal’.

The most frequent searches in the design register were ‘Slipeinlagen’ (panty liners), ‘montres’ (watches) and ‘table’.

Panty liners? People often forget that design rights aren’t just for designer items. Design, i.e shapes and patterns, can be found in every object – even in those that lead a more hidden existence. Whether a design can and should be protected is always assessed on a case-by-case basis (it must be new and significantly different to existing designs). A search in the design register retrieves four panty liner designs that have since been cancelled.

Twenty-three years after its launch, Swissreg is being deactivated and relaunched in a new form. This is part of an extensive e-government project at the IPI, which aims to directly link the customer processes with the digital processes to make procedures and register maintenance simpler, faster and more transparent.

A single platform will function as an official register and publication organ and will enable applicants and IP rights owners to manage their rights online too.

This platform has been introduced in stages. The process kicked off in 2020 with the launch of the new trade mark database at database.ipi.ch. This made it much easier and quicker to search for trade marks filed and registered in Switzerland. The search results can be filtered by various criteria, such as trade mark category and trade mark type. There are two other major differences: as well as national trade marks, the database contains international trade marks with effect in Switzerland; and it’s possible to search for similar terms to a certain extent.

The database has since been expanded. It now also includes patents, designs, emblems and supplementary protection certificates (SPCs and paediatric SPCs). Owners and representatives of IP rights can also request register changes and submit applications for international trade mark registration directly via the databases. If you wish, you can also directly access other digital services and, for example, submit current account debit orders to pay fees simply online. Setting up a user account offers additional options and provides you with an overview of all submissions at all times.

From the middle of November 2024, the IPI will also publish its official, legally binding publications in this database, including new registrations and granted patents, rectifications, renewals, cancellations, and owner, representative and licence changes. You can look forward to improved search and filter options for publications, and you’ll be able to save and subscribe to searches.

The ‘old’ IP rights database will be deactivated, but the web address will still be in use. You’ll find the new platform at the existing address www.swissreg.ch.