The seventh framework programme (FP7) runs from 2007 until
2013 and will provide funding of more than
€50 billion for research and development
across Europe. With so much money at stake, few can afford to
ignore it as a possible source of research funding. However,
the funding comes with strings attached and the grant
conditions, particularly those relating to IP, do not suit
everyone, as Catherine Rohll, a solicitor in Manches LLP
Technology & Media Department, explains. A number of calls
for proposals under the co-operation programme of FP7 have now
closed and initial funding decisions have been made. Those
involved in successful projects, particularly the co-ordinator
or lead participant in each project, will now be enmeshed in
the painful process of negotiating the contracts required as a
condition of the grant.
