Statistische Auswertung von Datenbanken als Instrument der Marktbeobachtung

Online statistics in patent databases offers the possibility to use patent data as a source for technical and market information. By this it also contributes to a decline in the information gap small and medium-sized enterprises face compared to big companies which have an own patent department. Differences in the capacity of statistical commands make it necessary to discuss advantages and disadvantages of the statistical procedures of different hosts. Based on own experiences, the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI), Karlsruhe, has developed a standardized analytical package named "patent- statistical competition analysis". By using online statistics, a deep insight into development trends in certain technology markets will become possible. Additionally, lists of competitors can be produced and the competitiveness on representative markets can be analysed. Patent databases should therefore not only be used for legal patent searches, but also as a source for technical and marketing information. By adjusting the file structures according to the needs of online statistics, the database producers could also contribute to a higher acceptability and diffusion in the utilization of technical and market related patent data.