General Terms and Conditions of Use
The legal mandate of the Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle (INPI ; French Patent and Trademark Office) is to centralise and disseminate all the information needed to protect innovations. As such, it is responsible for disseminating the technical, commercial and financial information contained in registered industrial property rights (L. 411-1, 1° and R. 411-1, 12° of the French Intellectual Property Code). INPI also maintains and manages these documents, makes them available to the public and raises awareness of its permanent archives.
In order to fully fulfil its mission of disseminating information in accordance with the public service principles and requirements, in particular with respect to equal rights, continuity, scalability and neutrality, INPI has computerised all of this data and makes it available to Users by providing appropriate search functions.
These General Terms and Conditions of Use apply to all use of the search service for historical patent and trademark archives made available to Users by the INPI.
Use of the Service is subject to the User’s unconditional acceptance of these General Terms and Conditions of Use.
Article 1 – Definitions
For the purposes of these General Terms and Conditions of Use, the terms below are defined as follows:
User : any person using the Service in accordance with these General Terms and Conditions of Use.
Service: the search service providing access to Information stored in a database and enabling the User to connect at any time via Internet access.
Information : legal, technical, commercial or financial information relating to industrial property contained in registered industrial property rights and in documents provided or received by INPI.
Personal data : any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person who can be identified either directly or indirectly. The ‘Reuse’ of such data is subject to compliance with the legal provisions in force.
Reuse : the use of Information for purposes other than those for which it was produced or received.
Article 2 – Purpose
The purpose of these General Terms and Conditions of Use is to define the relationship between INPI and the User and to set out the terms and conditions that apply to any search carried out via the Service.
The search service for historical patent and trade mark archives makes available to the public, free of charge, a database containing bibliographical, administrative and legal information held by INPI relating to patents granted in France between 1791 and 1901 and trade marks registered in France between 1857 and 1920.
Article 3 – Terms and Conditions of Use of the Service
The User undertakes to use the Service personally for his/her own needs and acknowledges that he/she has the necessary skills and means to use and access it. He/she also acknowledges that he/she has checked that the IT system in use does not contain any viruses and that it is in perfect working order.
The User undertakes to comply with all applicable laws, regulations and standards. In particular, the User undertakes not to infringe any rights, such as intellectual property rights, held by INPI or by third parties, as mentioned in article 6.
The User also undertakes not to appropriate or attempt to appropriate in an improper manner the data made available via the Service and undertakes to preserve the quality of the Service, its equipment and its bandwidth. The data made available online is made available under an open data licence, as specified in article 6.4.
The User undertakes not to violate or attempt to violate the IT security of INPI’s information systems or those of any of its service providers, nor to hinder their operation or make fraudulent use of them.
The User undertakes not to interfere with the operation of the Service in any way that would prevent or restrict access to or use of the Service by third parties. Failure to do so may result in the refusal of access to the Service without notice and without prejudice to any right to damages.
Article 4 – Access to information
4.1 - Available information
The Service provides free access to the patents granted in France between 1791 and 1901 and to the trade marks registered in France between 1857 and 1920.
Last updated: 02/01/2024
INPI uses all the means at its disposal both to create and update the database, and to ensure the permanence, continuity and quality of the Service it offers. Under no circumstances can it be held liable for the duty to achieve a particular result.
4.2 - Access to the Service
The User may access the service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, subject to any breakdowns or maintenance and update operations necessary for the proper functioning of the Service and barring events beyond the control of INPI or any of its service providers, including, but not limited to, cases of force majeure.
INPI undertakes to intervene within a reasonable period of time in the event of a breakdown or anomaly making access to the Service impossible, in order to restore access or inform Users. Nevertheless, INPI reserves the right to interrupt access to the Service at any time for maintenance, development or alteration reasons.
Article 5 – Personal data
5.1 - Personal data disseminated by the Service
The dissemination of personal data relating to registered industrial property rights is included in INPI’s legal obligations. It is provided for in articles R. 411-1 and R. 411-1-2 of the French Intellectual Property Code.
The data disseminated is collected during the formalities carried out in dealings with INPI’s departments. This includes the surname, first name and address of the filing party or applicant. The right to rectify this data is governed by INPI procedures and gives rise to formalities for which there may be a charge.
The User is not granted any rights over this personal data simply because it is consulted and undertakes to use the personal data in accordance with the provisions of the French Data Protection Act no. 78-17 of 6 January 1978, as amended.
5.2 - Personal data collected via the contact email or the ‘Report an error’ form.
INPI processes personal data via the ‘Contact’ and ‘Report an error’ buttons.
. "Contact" button: the mandatory data collected is the sender’s email address.
. "Report an error" button: the email address is only required to reply to the User, if necessary. Under no circumstances will it be used for any other purpose or passed on to third parties.
In the case of the "Contact" and "Report an error" buttons, the sole purpose of the processing is to enable the proper management of requests and errors reported by the User. This data is necessary for ensuring that the answers are addressed correctly.
This data will be kept on INPI’s secure servers for three years after the final contact between the User and INPI and is intended for use by INPI employees who are responsible for managing the response.
Data is collected in accordance with the French Data Protection Act No. 78-17 of 6 January 1978 and European Regulation 2016/679 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data.
In accordance with Articles 48 et seq. of the French Data Protection Act No. 78-17 of 6 January 1978, as amended, natural persons may exercise their right to access, erase and rectify their personal data concerned by this article (5.2) by contacting INPI by post or by e-mail at the following addresses:
• by post: Institut national de la propriété industrielle (INPI), Département des Opérations, 15, rue des Minimes, CS50001 - 92677, Courbevoie Cedex.
• by e-mail using the contact form: Contact us
5.3 - Personal Data Protection Officer
The User is hereby informed that a personal data protection officer has been appointed at INPI. He/she can contact the personal data protection officer by post at the following address: Institut national de la propriété industrielle, FAO personal data protection officer, 15, rue des Minimes, CS50001 - 92677, Courbevoie Cedex, or by e-mail using the contact form: Contact us. The User is also informed that the CNIL is the national authority for data protection, which can be contacted via the website cnil.fr
Article 6 – Intellectual property rights
6.1 - Intellectual property rights relating to the Website
INPI is the exclusive owner of all intellectual property rights to both the structure and the content of the Service, or has acquired the commercial rights without any limitation on a regular basis.
In this respect, any copying or representation, in whole or in part, by any means whatsoever, without the express authorisation of INPI is prohibited and constitutes an infringement subject to sanctions under Articles L. 335-2 et seq. of the French Intellectual Property Code.
In particular, any extraction or re-use of quantitatively or qualitatively substantial parts of the content of the databases is prohibited.
For the purposes of these provisions, the following in particular are deemed such:
1. with regard to a qualitatively substantial part, any extraction or re-use of a complete, coherent or relevant set of proposed data;
2. with regard to a quantitatively substantial part, any extraction or re-use of a volume of data greater than 10% of the annual flow per year and/or greater than 10 requests per minute.
Simply affixing a hypertext link to the Service is not considered to be an extraction. However, the User may not set up a hyperlink to the Service without INPI’s express prior authorisation.
6.2- Intellectual property rights relating to trademarks and logos
Any full or partial copying of the trademarks of INPI and its partners without the express prior authorisation of INPI and the partners concerned is prohibited in accordance with Articles L. 713-2 et seq. of the French Intellectual Property Code.
Any use or affixing of these trademarks in whole or in part without express prior authorisation shall be sanctioned by Article L. 716-1 of the French Intellectual Property Code.
6.3 - Intellectual property rights and other rights relating to the content of the Website
Certain digitised documents and information published on the Website are protected as such, in particular by intellectual property rights. Their reuse is subject to the prior authorisation of the rights holders.
6.4 - Open data
The procedures for reusing public information are defined by the provisions of Book III of the Code governing relations between the public and the authorities (Code des relations entre le public et l’administration).
If he/she so wishes, the User may obtain a licence from INPI specifying the specific conditions that apply to the re-use of INPI Information relating to registered industrial property rights. This licence has been approved by the French government under the terms of Articles L. 323-2 and D. 323-2-2 of the Code governing relations between the public and the authorities
Article 7 – Development of the Service
Subject to any applicable public policy provisions, INPI may decide to terminate the Service or modify its properties at any time, and without prior notice.
INPI also reserves the right to amend these General Terms and Conditions of Use at any time, and without prior notice. Unless otherwise indicated, the amendments will come into force on the date on which they are published.
The management reserves the right to suspend or interrupt the Service at any time. In the event of interruption, the management cannot be held liable for the consequences of this interruption for the User.
Article 8 – Liability
8.1 - Use of Information
INPI endeavours to ensure the accuracy, completeness and relevance of the Information made available via the Service, in particular when it comes from third-party authorities. To obtain official information, Users are invited to contact the relevant industrial property service.
The Service is not intended to be a substitute for professional services or advice, and under no circumstances should the search results be used as the basis for decisive legal or economic decisions. The Information is provided for information purposes only. The User is solely responsible for the queries and choices he/she makes and assumes sole responsibility for the direct or indirect consequences of making use of the results.
The User acknowledges that he/she has been fully informed that the available Information may be supplied by the competent industrial property services or authorities, who remain solely responsible for it, and that INPI merely makes it available as received, without providing any guarantee whatsoever.
In the event that the Information is reused, the User undertakes to comply with the provisions of the Code governing relations between the public and the authorities, in particular Article L322-1. Consequently, the Information will not be altered or distorted and its source and the date on which it was last updated will be stated.
8.2 - The use of IT resources
The User is solely responsible for data repatriation operations. Under no circumstances may INPI be held liable for any damage whatsoever resulting from the use of the Service.
In the event that it becomes technically impossible to connect the Service, INPI cannot be held liable.
Article 9 – Legal Notices
The Editor and host
The search service for historical patent and trademark archives is published and hosted by the Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle (INPI), a public administrative institution located at 15 rue des Minimes - CS50001 - 92677 Courbevoie Cedex (France) - Tel: +33 (0)1 56 65 89 98. Contact form: Contact us
The graphics and usability of this website were created by 1égal2, 11 avenue de la Capelette 13010, Marseille, France, 1egal2.com
Managing Editor: The website’s managing editor is the CEO of INPI.
Article 10 – Applicable law and jurisdiction
The INPI Service can be translated into several languages. However, only information copied in French is legally binding and enforceable against INPI.
Use of the Service, all acts and operations, and the rights and obligations of the parties resulting therefrom, are governed by and interpreted in accordance with French law.
Any dispute relating to the operation of the Service shall be referred to the competent administrative courts.
February 2024