BOIP Annual Report - 2017

Annual Report 2017 www.boip.int

Contents 3

Introduction

9

Trademarks

17 Designs 20 i-DEPOT 23 Organisation 25

Summary financial statements

32

Independent auditor’s report

2 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Introduction Interview with Mr Edmond Simon, Director General

In economic terms, 2017 was a good year: economies grew, unemployment receded and the number of bankruptcies dropped. The political context in the EU and elsewhere was, however, typified by uncertainty and instability. Both economics and politics have an impact on our field of expertise: intellectual property. The Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP) keeps a keen eye on developments and seizes opportunities to turn emerging changes to its advantage. In this annual report, Director General Edmond Simon provides a rundown of the results achieved and activities conducted by the BOIP in 2017 and looks ahead to the coming years.

What were the headline results for BOIP in 2017? ‘We are pleased to see that the number of trademark applications filed is holding steady.

The spread of applications has also remained constant in recent years, e.g. in terms of language and of country of origin. Similarly, the proportion of applications filed by IP 3 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

professionals and by private persons remains In recent years…

more or less unchanged (see box). There

• on average 14% of trademark

has been a slight increase in the number of

applications were filed in French,

oppositions and the number of designs.

14% in English and 72% in Dutch;

Unfortunately, i-DEPOT did not fare as well:

• approx. 59% of the applications

the number of submissions dropped by 7%.

were from the Netherlands,

That was, however, somewhat offset by an

29% from Belgium, 5% from

increase of 25% in the number of extensions

Luxembourg and 7% from outside

of i-DEPOT storage periods.

the Benelux; • on average 42% of trademark

What were BOIP’s main achievements in 2017?

applications were filed by

We worked hard again! On the statutory front,

private individuals and 58% by

we did the requisite work to transpose the

IP professionals.

new Trade Marks Directive into the Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property (BCIP).

The three countries took a joint decision to

align the BCIP, as far as possible, on the content, structure and wording of the Directive.

The amending protocol was subsequently signed by the Committee of Ministers on 11 December 2017.

In addition, we readied BOIP to exercise its new powers as of 1 June 2018, i.e. to apply the cancellation procedure. Among other things, this involved adapting the Implementing Regulations. The requisite changes were discussed, notably at a meeting with judges from the three countries. Furthermore, as of 1 June, all appeals against BOIP decisions must be lodged with the Benelux Court of Justice. BOIP will manage and litigate all appeals itself. These developments have all resulted in new, structural, complex tasks for BOIP. On the organisational front, two big projects dominated the agenda. The first was to develop a new back-office system to process trademark filings. Given that implementing the system has repercussions on almost all our other systems, it is an enormous task.

The first phase will be rolled out in mid-2018, together with another new back-office system, designed to streamline the processing of opposition files. The second project 4 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

was to rebuild the website. The new website, which went live at the end of 2017, has a completely different design and fresh content. The new site is intuitive, easy to navigate and structured from the client’s perspective. We also re-vamped our online tools, e.g. for applying for trademark or design registration, to give them the same look and feel as the website.

We successfully implemented other projects too, for example, we added new functionalities to the i-DEPOT, such as digital file transfer and a tool for representatives, and we worked on a solution for online trademark registration for large clients, in light of the phasing out of our B2B services, BMBconnect and TMtalk.

Needless to say, we also proactively fulfilled our statutory remit to provide information and promote services. For example, we launched a banner campaign on social media to promote trademark registration. In Belgium, amongst other activities in 2017, we conducted an awareness-raising drive targeting accountants and tax consultants. In the Netherlands, we took part in the (successful) OndernemersPlein pilot organised by the Chamber of Commerce in Rotterdam. We also gave a large number of presentations, workshops and training sessions in the three countries, including in the House of Training in Luxembourg.

What were the key changes in the IP landscape in 2017?

In autumn 2017, the newly appointed Benelux Council for Intellectual Property (BCIP) held a meeting under its new chairman, Antoon Quaedvlieg (Netherlands). Mr Quaedvlieg succeeded Geert Glas (Belgium), who had provided sound stewardship to the Council for the preceding eight years.

At the European level, as in previous years, we worked well with EUIPO and the national offices on the European Cooperation Projects (ECP), which aim to develop shared tools and standards for trademark and design registration.

5 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

What are BOIP’s plans for 2018?

The major milestone in the first half of the year is, of course, 1 June 2018, when the cancellation procedure and the Benelux Court of Justice’s new powers take effect (entry into force of the 2014 BCIP protocols). To prepare the way for these developments, we held two information sessions, in May and November. Also in June 2018, our new back-office systems for processing trademark applications and oppositions will enter service. In short, a lot of change! Various other innovations will gradually be rolled out after June. These will include a number of new functionalities, such as digital correspondence with customers through our website online environment My BOIP. In the second half of the year, we will focus on preparing the ground for the entry into force of the EU Directive (Trade Mark Package) in early 2019. Amongst other developments, the Directive opens the way for filing new types of trademarks, adds new absolute and relative grounds and creates certification marks alongside collective trademarks. These innovations require amendment of our Implementing Regulations and, of course, of our internal processes and systems. The new EU Directive also contains an optional provision for a ‘one-class-per-fee’ structure. We have held discussions with the three countries on this point. Agreement has been reached at the political level on a new structure, namely a ‘basic fee” for one class only (that is slightly lower than the current standard fee), with a surcharge applying for the addition of two or more classes.

The idea behind the provision is to help reduce the number of inconsistencies in the register and of disputes between trademark owners. It is intended that the new tariff structure apply as of 1 January 2019.

What else is on the to-do list?

We will remain vigilant when it comes to protecting our systems and to information security. We are, of course, already carefully applying the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), but we are also doing our utmost in various other ways to keep our services safe and reliable.

Turning to another topic: the EU Directive on Trade Secrets must be transposed in all member states in 2018. BOIP’s i-DEPOT is a simple and affordable way for companies to

6 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

record their trade secrets and obtain a trustworthy date stamp. We want to investigate the possibility of launching a campaign, in conjunction with the national offices, aimed at business-service entrepreneurs, start-ups and scale-ups.

Finally, when it comes to our additional remits, we will continue to discharge the duty entrusted in us by the National Office for the Caribbean Netherlands to implement the Trademark (BES Islands) Act (WMB). This concerns trademark legislation that applies to the three special Dutch municipalities, Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba. In 2018, we will, for instance, develop a new trademark register for the Caribbean Netherlands.

What is your take on the future?

BOIP’s financial situation remained worrying in 2017. In response to this, we took a good, hard look at all our costs and made some deep cuts. We were also obliged to raise our fees for the first time in thirteen years, with effect from 1 January 2018. We remain concerned about the short-term financial situation as revenue is continuing to lag behind rising costs.

We have, however, invested heavily in automation in recent years. This has had a considerable impact on our internal processes: we now work more efficiently and more effectively. There have been repercussions in terms of the nature of the work and the manpower required. In 2018, BOIP will be restructuring and we will be obliged to let some staff go. We are much saddened at the prospect of losing colleagues, but unfortunately it is necessary. Despite this, we will continue our work with a positive and optimistic outlook. We can already look back proudly on all that we have achieved! In 2018, we will continue to work hard every day to provide our clients with swift and dependable services.’

7 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Trademarks

8 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

TR AD EM AR

Benelux filings 2013-2017 1 2

KS

2017 Benelux filings (in numbers)

21,633

98.92

Of which submitted online (in %)

2016

21,778

99.06

2015

22,211

98.56

2014

20,478

98.71

2013 21,178

9.88

1 The numbers of filings are accounted for by the date of receipt of the request.

2 These statistics also comprise lapsed filings. Part of the lapsed filings is missing an application number and thus a country of origin. As a result some discrepancies exist between the figures contained in this table and those contained in the table entitled ‘Benelux filings by country of origin’.

Collective trademarks 2013-2017 (in numbers) 1 2 2017 53 2016 88 2015

62

2014

70

2013 73

1 The numbers of filings are accounted for by the date of receipt of the request.

2 These statistics also comprise lapsed filings. Part of the lapsed filings is missing an application number and thus a country of origin. As a result some discrepancies exist between the figures contained in this table and those contained in the table entitled ‘Benelux filings by country of origin’.

9 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

TR AD EM AR

Breakdown of Benelux filings by payment method 2013-2017 (in numbers)

KS

2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 Bancontact/Mister Cash

942 814 702 432 456

Current account

6,553 6,017 5,208 3,998 3,437

iDEAL 4,238 4,273 4,653 3,478 3,400 MasterCard 1,206 1,326 1,414 1,058 932 Money transfer

4,083 4,171 3,824 5,343 5,635

Not online 3,568 4,102 5,231 5,243 6,656 Visa 967 1,062 1,170 938 728 Other 76 13 8 53 23

Breakdown of Benelux filings by language 2013-2017 1

2017 2016 2015 2014 2013

Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % English 2,957 13.67 2,997 13.76 2,675 12.04 1,729 8.42 406 1.91 French 3,050 14.10

3,193 14.66

3,377 15.20

3,293 16.03

3,539 16.64

Dutch 15,626 72.23

15,588 71.58

16,158 72.75

15,521 75.55

17,322 81.45

Total 21,633 100

21,778 100

22,210 100

20,543 100

21,267 100

1 In 2013, English was introduced as a third working language, in addition to French and Dutch.

10 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

TR AD EM AR

Breakdown of Benelux filings by country of origin 2017

KS

Netherlands Belgium Luxembourg 12,669 6,296 1,006

U.S. Japan Other EU Other 254 18 885 505

Breakdown of Benelux filings by country of origin 2013-2017

2017 2016 2015 2014 2013

Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Netherlands 12,669 58.56 12,690 58.29 13,300 59.90 12,517 61.10 13,095 61.8 Belgium 6,296 29.10 6,305 29.00 6,208 28.00 5,475 26.80 5,711 27.0 Luxembourg 1,006 4.65

1,090 5.00

1,137 5.10

1,089 5.30

877 4.1

U.S. 254 1.18 298 1.40 339 1.50 287 1.40 299 1.4 Japan 18 0.09 25 0.10 32 0.10 44 0.20 39 0.2 Other EU

885 4.09 874 4.01 744 3.40 599 2.90 655 3.1

Other 505 2.33 489 2.25 451 2.00 467 2.30 502 2.4 Total 21,633 100

21,771 100

11 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

22,211 100

20,478 100

21,178 100

TR AD EM AR

Number of trademarks published 2013-2017 (in numbers)

KS

Individual Collective Total 2017

18,532 54 18,586

2016 18,929 66 18,995 2015 19,149 54 19,203 2014 18,191 52 18,243 2013 18,721 76 18,797

Requests for renewal 2013-2017 (in numbers) Individual Collective Total 2017 13,165 49 13,214 2016

13,153 60 13,213

2015 14,717 53 14,770 2014 12,436 47 12,483 2013 12,138 57 12,195

International registrations applied for via BOIP 2013-2017 (in numbers) 2017 2016

1,903 1,665

2015 2,007 2014 2013

1,871 1,897

International registrations valid in the Benelux region 2013-2017 (in numbers) 2017 2,400 2016

2,113

2015 2014

3,962 3,648

2013 4,224

12 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

TR AD EM AR

Refusals on absolute grounds - 2016 Statistics 1

KS

Number % Benelux filings Total 2 20,917 100

Filed by trademark proprietors

8,500

40.64

Filed by agents 12,417 59.36

Provisional refusals

Total 1,805 8.63

Full 1,713 8.19

Partial 92 0.44

Filed by trademark proprietors

948

11.15

Filed by agents 857 6.90

Filings resulting in registration despite provisional refusal 3 114 0.55

Filings withdrawn by request / cancelled priority registrations

239

1.14

Filings excluded from further processing

17

0.08

Objection period still underway (1,15 Implementing Regulations)

28

0.13

Final refusals Total 4 1,407 6.73

Of which cancelled priority registrations

80

Full 1,328 6.35

Partial 79 0.38

Filed by trademark proprietors 5 865 10.18

Filed by agents 5

542 4.36

Objections lodged 298

No objections lodged 1,109

Appeal lodged (Article 2,12 BCIP) 6

In Belgium 3

In the Netherlands 1

In Luxembourg 1

13 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

TR AD EM AR

Notes to the table ‘Refusals on absolute grounds’

KS

1 The statistics for 2017 are not yet available due to the deadlines specified for this procedure.

2 Only the admissable filings are included in these statistics.

3 This mainly concerns provisional refusals that were reversed following a response from the trademark proprietors/agents, e.g. when the filing was limited or proof of naturalisation was produced.

4 The percentage of final refusals has risen considerably over the past few years. This can be explained in part by changes in the registration procedure, which have reduced the number of filings that are excluded from further processing.

5 These refusal percentages are calculated relative to the number of filings submitted by trademark proprietors/agents.

6 In contrast to all other figures in this table, the totals of which have been calculated based on the filing date in the relevant year, the number of appeals has been calculated on the basis of the appeal submission date.

Development of refusals on absolute grounds versus the number of filings 2008-2016 12 10.89 10.42

10

9.19

9.19

8.56 8.19

8.22

8

8.63

7.18

7.58

7.21

7.84

6.71

6.73

6.17

6.04

6

5.49

5.79

4 2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

Provisional refusals Final refusals

14 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

2013

2014

2015

2016

TR AD EM AR

Oppositions

KS

Number % Admissable 1,081 97.1 Inadmissable 32 2.9 Total 1,113 100

Cancelled in 2016 (admissable oppositions) Total 528 48.8 Still under consideration (admissable oppositions)

Of 2017 553 51.2

Preferred language (admissable oppositions)

Dutch 785 72.6

French 134 12.4

English 162 15.0

Opposition filed against (admissable oppositions)

Benelux law 1,028 95.1

International law 53 4.9

Opposition based on (admissable oppositions)1

Benelux trademark 375 34.7

European Union trademark

735

68.0

International trademark 239 22.1

1 Multiple types of rights can be invoked for each opposition.

15 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Designs

16 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

DE SI GN

Benelux designs 2013-2017 (in numbers) 1

S

2017 Benelux designs 975

Number of designs published

836

2016 957 952 2015

2014

2013

1,161

1,028

847

763

988

866

1 The figures contained in these tables are accounted for by the number of designs filed and not the number of filings.

The figures only cover valid designs.

Requests for renewal 2013-2017 (in numbers) 1 2017

570

2016 871 2015 2014

742

632

2013

760

1 The figures contained in these tables are accounted for by the number of designs filed and not the number of filings.

The figures only cover valid designs.

17 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

DE SI GN S

Type of submission 2013-2017 (in %) 1 2 2017

99.07

0.93

2016

98.43

1.57

2015

91.04 8.96

2014

67.77 32.23

2013

100

Online

On paper

1 The figures contained in these tables are accounted for by the number of designs filed and not the number of filings.

The figures only cover valid designs.

2 Since 2014 designs can be submitted electronically.

18 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

i-DEPOT

19 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

i-D EP OT

Online i-DEPOT 2017 (in numbers)

Other

221

2,703

2,161

172

Online i-DEPOT 2013-2017 (in numbers)

2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 Belgium 2,161 2,288 2,294 2,216 2,105 Netherlands 2,703 2,887 2,937 3,281 3,840 Luxembourg 172 245 177 247 151 Other 221 208 156 122 131 Total 5,257 5,628 5,564 5,866 6,227

20 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

i-D EP

2017 Sold

OT

i-DEPOT envelopes 2013-2017 (in numbers) 1 198

Returned

213

2016

337

307 2015

381

2014

469

394 372

2013

499

401

1 Sold envelopes are not always returned within the same year. Therefore in certain years the number of returned envelopes may be higher than the number of sold envelopes.Â

Breakdown of i-DEPOT envelopes by country 2013-2017 (in numbers)

2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 Belgium

73 129 135 153 172

Netherlands 107 123 180 179 176 Luxembourg 27 45 43 25 42 Other

6 10 23 15 11

Total 213 307 381 372 401

Number of i-DEPOT storage period extensions 2013-2017 (in numbers) 2017

933

2016

747

2015

464

2014

325

2013

180

21 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Organisation

22 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Organisation

Our office is situated in The Hague. BOIP has 89 employees. We work closely with the national offices in Brussels and Luxembourg.

Number of employees

31-12-17 31-12-16 NL 67 66 B 18 18 L 3 3 FR 1 2 Total 89 89

Male 46 43

Female 43 46

Number of FTEs (full-time equivalents) 78.06 80.6

National offices National Office Belgium

National Office Luxembourg

Federal Economic Service

Ministère de l’Économie

Small and Medium-Sized Businesses and Energy

Office de la propriété intellectuelle

Intellectual Property Unit

Boulevard Royal 19-21

City Atrium - Vooruitgangsstraat 50

L -2914 Luxembourg

1210 Brussels

T +352 247 84113

T +32 2 277 90 11

F +352 247 94113

F +32 2 277 52 62

dpi@eco.etat.lu

info.eco@economie.fgov.be

https://meco.gouvernement.lu

https://economie.fgov.be/en/themes/intellectual-property

23 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Summary financial statements

24 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Summary financial statements Notes to the 2017 summary financial statements This chapter contains a summary of the internal financial statements for the 2017 financial year. The auditor’s report only covers the balance sheet, the income statement and the accompanying notes in the financial chapter of this Annual Report. There are no generally accepted criteria available for compiling summary financial statements.

Therefore, the Management Board itself has developed these criteria. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a comprehensible summary of the BOIP’s internal financial statements. The criteria and the aggregation level applied in this summary are based on this purpose.

The balance sheet as at 31 December 2017 and the 2017 income statement from the internal financial statements are fully incorporated in this summary. The statement of changes in equity has also been added.

The internal financial statements are based on IPSAS. These summary financial statements only state the accounting policies for a number of material items. The notes required under IPSAS are set out in a simplified manner, taking account of the intended purpose of these summary financial statements.

The accompanying summary was issued at a later date than the internal financial statements. Because this document only intends to provide a summary of the original internal financial statements for the 2017 financial year, the events in the interim period have not been taken into account.

Reading this summary may not substitute reading the original internal financial statements for the 2017 financial year due to the fact that various simplifications have been introduced. Users who need more information can view a copy of the internal financial statements at BOIP’s office.

25 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Balance sheet 2017 (after appopriation of the result)

In thousands of euros

31 Dec. 2017

31 Dec. 2016

Assets Current assets Cash at bank and in hand 5,954 6,555 Receivables, prepayments and accrued income 3,297 2,488

9,251 9,043

Fixed assets Financial fixed assets 12,715 12,696 Tangible fixed assets 6,062 6,563 Intangible fixed assets 5,709 4,726

24,486 23,985

Total assets 33,737 33,028

Liabilities Current liabilities, accruals and deferred income

6,733 6,364

Non-current liabilities Employee benefits 17,513 23,184 BPP 2,983 2,725

20,496 25,909

Equity Cumulative surplus 6,508 755

Total liabilities 33,737 33,028

26 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Notes to the balance sheet • The summary financial statements have been prepared in compliance with Articles 19 and 20 of BOIP’s financial regulations.

• Bonds, shares and other investments are stated at fair value. The realised and unrealised results are recognised in the income statement.

• The tangible and intangible fixed assets are stated at cost or on the basis of the costs incurred, less accumulated depreciation and, if applicable, less impairments.

• Current liabilities mainly comprise deferred income (payments for services not yet rendered).

• Non-current liabilities largely consist of liabilities relating to employee benefit schemes, which under IPSAS are required to be recognised under liabilities. The main part is the debt provision for future pension costs and future warranty costs, amounting to €11,104,000 (2016: €17,296,000).

• The cumulative surplus comprises the accumulated earnings as well as the movements in non-current liabilities that are taken directly to equity.

27 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Income statement 2017 In thousands of euros

Budget 2017 2017 2016

Revenue Turnover from filings 5,780 5,616 5,739 Turnover from renewals 3,917 3,846 3,789 Other 5,267 4,949 5,509 14,964

Total revenue

14,411

14,636

Operating costs Salary costs 8,214 8,132 8,370 Social security contributions 1,558 1,420 1,537 Pension costs 3,200 3,082 3,303 Other staff costs

677

866 1,379

Internal tax and social levies -2,499 -2,593 -2,430 Staff costs

11,150

10,907

12,159

Depreciation costs 1,944 1,850 1,462 Other operating costs 2,936 2,438 2,910 16,030

Less: total operating costs

15,195

16,531

Exceptional income 0 6,292 0 Operating result

- 1,066 5,508

-1,895

Financial income and expenses Interest income and dividend

351

383

393

Investment transaction results 57 150 278 Exchange gains and losses

0

-33

-5

Bank charges -92 -91 -90 Total financial income and expenses

316

409

576

Surplus (+) / Deficit (-) - 750 5,917 -1,319

28 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Notes to the income statement BOIP recorded a surplus of €5,917,000 (2016: deficit of €1,319,000). The improvement can be attributed to the release of a substantial part of the pension provision as a result of the pension scheme having been made conditional as from 2017.

• The budgets included in the summary financial statements have not been audited.

• Revenue relates to the revenue derived from services rendered in the financial year.

• The cost price of these services is allocated to the same period. If the bottom-line result of a service cannot be determined in a reliable manner, but is expected to be positive, only the revenue amounting to the sum of the costs is recognised. If these costs cannot be reliably determined, revenues are not recognised in the interim period but on completion of the service. However, the costs already incurred are recognised in the income statement.

• At €14,411,000, the turnover recorded remained just 4% lower than budget (€14,964,000). This is mainly due to lower turnover from filings (€164,000) and lower international revenue (€173,000).

• At €10,907,000, staff costs are slightly below budget (€11,150,000) as a result of lower salary costs and social security contributions (€220,000) and pension costs (€118,000) compared with higher other staff costs (€189,000).

• The depreciation costs recorded of €1,850,000 remained well within budget (budget: €1,944,000) as a result of depreciation on a number of projects/constituent projects commencing later than expected.

• Other costs decreased in the financial year to €2,438,000 (2016: €2,910,000) because costs were cut as far as possible owing to the unpromising prospects.

• The exceptional income comprises the release from the pension provision as a result of the pension scheme having been made conditional.

29 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Statement of changes in equity 2017 Operating In thousands of euros

surpluses

Equity as at 1 January 2016

4,145

Reserve

Total

revaluation 1,527

5,672

Non-current liabilities – employee benefits due to a change in the notional interest rat

Pension

-3,431

-167

-167

-1,319

-1,319

Healthcare after retirement 2016 operating result

-3,431

2,826

-2,071

755

Developments in stock

-360

-360

Equity as at 31 December 2016

Pension

Healthcare after retirement

Change in the notional interest rate

115

115

Developments in stock

81

81

2017 operating result

5,917

5,917

Equity as at 31 December 2017

8,743

6,508

30 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

-2,235

Independent auditor’s report

31 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)

Independent auditor’s report An auditor’s report was issued for the Dutch version of this annual report. The figures in this external annual report correspond to those published in the Dutch annual report.

32 Annual Report 2017 – Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP)