Has business interest to utility models been influenced by covid 19 an empirical analysis

The paper’s aim is to explore if business interest to utility model (UM) registration in Bulgaria changed with COVID-19 and in what direction. Based on empirical research for the period 2009-2023 (i.e. before and after COVID-19 beginning) the paper analyzes the registration activity in a few dimensions – intensity, change in time, fields of interest, origin and type of the owners, to outline the behavior in comparison with other groups of holders. The paper, moreover, analyzes as well if the motivation of business changed in the different years after COVID-19 beginning and how, to better investigate the pandemic’s influence on its interest in technical solutions protection via UM, before it concludes.