Recital (1)

Crises require the carrying out of exceptional, swift, adequate and proportionate measures capable of providing means to address them or their impact. To do so, the use of patented products or processes could prove indispensable. Voluntary licensing agreements usually suffice to licence the patent rights on those products or processes and to allow their supply in the Union. Voluntary agreements are the most appropriate, quickest, and most efficient solution to allow the use of patented products and processes and to scale up production in crises. Nevertheless, it might not be possible to reach voluntary agreements or such agreements might involve inadequate conditions such as lengthy delivery times. A compulsory licence, which is an authorisation to use an invention protected by intellectual property rights without the consent of the right holder, can provide a solution of last resort, where voluntary agreements would not be achievable or where they would prove inadequate, to allow access to patented products or processes, in particular in respect of products necessary to tackle the impact of a crisis.