Call for proposals GR/001/19

Support for awareness-raising activities on the value of intellectual property and the damage caused by counterfeiting and piracy

Reporting

Beneficiaries will find below the annexes V & VI of the Grant Agreement (annexes VI & VII in case of multi beneficiaries agreement) related to the Final Reporting:

Performance indicators

Beneficiaries will find below the annex VII of the Grant Agreement (annex VIII in case of multi beneficiaries agreement) related to the Performance Monitoring System:

The link to the Monitoring System works both for the mid-term and the final assessment.

Publicity and use of the relevant logo (article I.11 of the Grant Agreement)

Visibility guidelines

This document contains instructions related to the obligation to display a logo and to acknowledge the support received under the relevant grant agreement in all communication and promotional materials.

Logo to use:

Note on graphical file formats:

EPS: recommended for professional use and vector programmes
PNG: standard image format transparent for general use

Funding space

As the call for proposals has now closed, all the documents below are made available for information purposes only.

The Call for proposals is made up of the following sections

The Call notice (short version of the call for proposals) published in the Official Journal in all EU official languages
The Call for proposals – Guidelines for applicants and the application package (published only in English)
The e-Form link for electronic submission of applications
The Questions & answers section

1. Call notice

Call notice GR/001/19 as published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 27/05/2019:

The call notice has been published with a wrong reference number. The correct reference of the call is GR/001/19. A related corrigendum has been published in the Official Journal.

2. Call for proposals

Below you will find the full text of the call for proposals and the application package with instructions and templates on how to submit a proposal.

Call for proposals GR-001-19 - Guidelines for applicants
Annex 1 - Narratives (covering key IP challenges raised by EU young citizens following the latest studies published by the Observatory)
Annex 2 - Application package containing:
Annex 3 - Draft Grant Agreement (for applicant’s information)
- Model grant agreement (Mono beneficiary)
- Model grant agreement (Multi beneficiaries)
Annex 4 - Performance indicators

3. Electronic Application Forms – e-Forms:

Call reference	Electronic application	Version	Released on
GR/001/19	Application e-Form	1,0	27/05/2019

The e-Form is available only in English. The applicant can start the process of creation of the e-Form using the following document: e-Form User Guide
We strongly advise applicants not to wait until the last moment for submitting their on-line application.

After the deadline for submission of applications ends, the online application system will be closed.

As an Applicant, please:

read the call for proposals carefully before to start completing your application
complete the relevant templates of the application package
use the official e-Form. Please fill in the e-Form by referring to the User Guide and don’t forget to also upload the compulsory annexes.
submit your application online before the specified deadline. You should receive a confirmation email.
save and view your application to which you have applied on your local computer

Technical issues:

If, after referring to the e-Form User Guide you still have a question and/or if you experience a technical problem when submitting your application, please contact directly the mailbox: grants@euipo.europa.eu

4. Questions & answers

Replies to your questions will be published in this section. Therefore, we recommend you to check frequently whether any new information/document is posted.

Please note that

the last date for requesting clarifications from the Office is 26/06/2019.
the last date on which clarifications are issued by the Office is 27/06/2019.


Questions & answers (click on the question to expand the answer underneath)	Date
AConcerning the eligible proposals for Lot-2, Guidelines state: ‘proposed activities must take place in at least two EU Member States’. The question is: Switzerland can be considered eligible? Or it should be considered a EU Member Associated Country and therefore NOT eligible? As described in point 8.1. of the Guidelines for applicants, eligible applicants “must be registered in one of the 28 Member States”, meaning EU Member states. Regarding activities, point 8.3. of the same document set up that “eligible activities may take place in one or more Member States of the EU” not being the case of Switzerland.	03/06/2019
Should all partners complete and sign individually Form C- "Declaration of Honour", or only the coordinator representing the consortium, as quoted in the Application Guide, page 15: "In case of partnership , the applicant (coordinator) must sign this declaration on its honor certifying that he or she and their partners are not in one of the situations referred to above " (we understand that the rest of the members, except the coordinator, must sign the "Letter of Mandate" form). Indeed, for this call for proposals as indicated in the last paragraph of article 9.3, the obligation regarding the provision of a declaration on honour may be fulflled by the coordinator signing on behalf of all the partners. The latest though, have to sign the letter of mandate.	06/06/2019
Financial capacity check (Section 5.1 of the Project Description Form): The coordinator of the proposal will be a public University, and as such, would not be supposed to complete the financial capacity check table. However, it is planned that at least 1 private entity will join the consortium. Do they have to carry out the abovementioned check? In the case of grants above 60,000€, when a financial capacity table is required, only the coordinator needs to submit it. As indicated in the guidelines, if the coordinator is a public body, he is exempted from this check.	06/06/2019
Are permanent staff costs of a public University professors eligible direct costs? Yes, as indicated in the guidelines for applicants, under article 15.1, the following are considered as eligible costs: "The costs related to the beneficiary’s staff or that of its partners assigned to the action, comprising actual salaries plus social security charges and other statutory costs included in the remuneration, provided that this does not exceed the average rates corresponding to the beneficiary’s usual policy on remuneration." This is also further detailled in article II.19.2 of the general conditions of the draft grant agreement.	07/06/2019
In the Description of the project form section - 5. OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL CAPACITY, it is indicated that “ Applicant (leader and partner each) must filled in and signed the Declaration on Honour – Annex C.” But then, in the guidelines, page 15, it is indicated that: “Supporting documents. Applicants must provide a signed declaration on their honour certifying that they are not in one of the situations referred to in Articles 136(1) and 141 of the Financial Regulations, which is attached to the application form Annex 2.C. In case of partnership, the applicant (coordinator) must sign this declaration on its honour certifying that he or she and their partners are not in one of the situations referred to above. And at page 16: “Operational capacity. The applicant must provide a signed declaration on honour (attached to the application form Annex 2.C). In case of a partnership, the coordinator will sign the declaration on behalf of the partner(s). “ So, do you confirm that the declaration has to be signed only by the project applicant on behalf of the partners? Indeed, for this call for proposals as indicated in the last paragraph of article 9.3, the obligation regarding the provision of a declaration on honour may be fulflled by the coordinator signing on behalf of all the partners. The latest though, have to sign the letter of mandate.	11/06/2019
Our company was founded last year (11-2018), but we have a closed financial year. Can we apply this way, or the 2 financial years are mandatory? Yes, the minimum 2 years registration period is an eligibility criterion. Therefore, not complying with this requirement will lead to the rejection of the application.	12/06/2019
Draft Grant Agreement - II.2.3 General obligations and role of the coordinator - Will the lead partner be responsible for reporting, financial statements, audits, checks on behalf of all project partners? Your understandingis correct, the coordinator is responsible for collecting and verifying all necessary documents from the partners in order to supply all requested information to the Office.	12/06/2019
Is a specific font and size required for the drawing up of the project? No particular font or size is required for drawing up the proposal, only recommended to follow the font & size used for the template.	12/06/2019
Guidelines for applicants - 11. Award Criteria - Lot 2 - Criteria 2. Reach and impact - What do you mean for "Number of reaches in relation to cost (reaches/€)"? What do you mean for "reaches"? In the context of the Award Criteria - Lot 1&2 - Criteria 2. Reach and impact, the concept “reaches” in the sentences “Number of reaches (submitted via the online form) will be measured in relation to cost (reaches/€). Number of proposed reaches (sum of all reach channels) will be divided by the requested grant amount“ shall be understood as the addition (if applicable across countries) of all reach estimated through the different proposed channels in the “Quantitative Assessment” part of the Application e-Form. The reach will therefore be the addition of: For face-to-face events number of participants attending the event (if the whole event concerns the awareness activity) number of visitors (in case of a specific boot/stand in a bigger event) For social media impressions on Twitter impressions on Facebook impressions on Instagram video views on YouTube For traditional media Total reach through articles in paper or online newspapers Total reach through radio Total reach through TV For Online (web) pages/documents/tools/videos Number of total visits Number of downloads (if online documents are used) Number of clicks (if on line tools (search tools, application tools, etc.) are used) Number of views (if online videos are used) as estimated by the applicant in the “Quantitative Assessment” section of the Application e-Form.	12/06/2019
In relation to lot 1, E-learning for infringements for academic purposes classifying challenges according to professional disciplines and the different IP protection layers available within each discipline.We wonder if this would go under "web-based tools, activities, solutions, etc." and if so, we would like you to clarify why didn't you mention "e-learning" explicitly. We strongly believe web-based activity could easily imply e-learning solutions, but we might be wrong and this is ok. Please if you may, we would appreciate that you provide us with feedback on what you are expecting specifically. As explained in point 8.3. “Eligible activities” of the Guidelines for applicants, the awareness-raising activities provided are not exhaustive examples. Applicants are invited to propose activities in line with the scope and objectives of respective lots. Indeed, e-learning tools could be considered a web-based tools.	14/06/2019
In relation to lot 2, Infringement risk assessment and awareness rising prototype tool through an automatic survey (input) and report (output) on risk probability of IP protection and solutions suggestions in any given context as a means to gather relevant data to better understand infringements and guide users on preventive measures available to the general public. We believe it is an original idea for a web-based solution to prevent unnecessary infringements deriving from business interventions, but we would not have sufficient funding to reach targets, we would like to know if there is a slight chance for you to own the tool to ensure both, (i) a platform from where to be accessed (ii) ensure the tool is sustainable in the long-run, and we would also like to know the extent to which we may interexchange information with you on the matter/services feedback already available. Applicants are invited to submit proposals in line with the objectives and priorities set down in point 3 of the Guidelines for applicants. The available budget for this call and the maximum financial contribution of the Office are established in point 6 of the Guidelines for applicants. The grant is limited to the maximum co-financing rate. Point 8.4 of the Guidelines for applicants set down the maximum duration of projects on 12 months. As established in point 12.2 of the Guidelines for applicants, the awarding of a grant does not establish an entitlement for a grant in subsequent years. Exchanges of information or bilateral discussions with applicants are not authorized, please check point 24 of the Guidelines for applicants for additional information or clarifications. .	14/06/2019
With regards to the application for Lot 2 of the above mentioned Call for Proposal we would like to ask for some clarifications: 1. A Company, will act as “Coordinator” : it will design, shoot (filming in six different European countries) and produce contents about the Intellectual Property. These contents will be distributed in Italy on the TV channel, its website and official social profiles. A spanish company will act as “Partner” : it will edit and translate in Spanish the contents and distribute them across its Spanish web platform. Does this cross-border partnership comply with the requirements of Lot 2 to become eligible? Please also consider that in terms of further contents dissemination the produced contents will be distributed also by an agency on its Italian websites and in Spain, through widgets. 2. If the Partner does not bear any cost, can the Coordinator receive the whole amount of the financing? 3. In case the project will be awarded of the financing, but the amount is lower than the expected 80%, can we decide not to implement the project or redesign it proportionally? 4. Which kind of documents should the spanish company as “Partner” present other than the mandate letter as per Cl. 8.1 of the Guidelines for Applicants? 5. Will it be possible after the application deadline to send further specifications and details on the contents and costs allocation? Point 8.2. of the guidelines for applicants on Eligible proposals for Lot 2 sets down that the proposal should include activities that must take place in at least two EU Member States. There is no requirements on “cross-border partnership”. For further details on eligible applicants please check to point 8.1. of the guidelines for applicants. In case of partnership, the coordinator will be the sole recipient of payments made by the Office, it is responsible for re-distributing the payments to the Co-beneficiaries without unjustified delay and for requesting payments to the Office. 3) During the evaluation stage, applicants may be invited to introduce corrections and adjustments to their proposals and to submit on this basis a revised description of the action and/or budget. At the award stage, applicants will be requested to confirm their commitment to implement the action, presented in their (revised) application, or to inform us of any circumstances preventing them to do so. Partners must provide letters of mandate and supporting documents confirming their eligibility as legal entity. No modification to the application is allowed once the deadline for submission has elapsed. However, if there is a need to clarify certain aspects or to correct clerical mistakes, the Office may contact the applicant during the evaluation process.	18/06/2019
we would like to ask you what information should be considered as the “project number” , as requested in the form. We have seen that the electronic form produces an “identification code” after the submission of the proposal, but the Letter of Mandate and other supporting documentations must be uploaded together with the e-form before its submission, which seems a bit confusing. Would it be OK just to put the Call of Proposals reference number therein? Where a project number is requested please indicate only the title of the project that you will submit.	19/06/2019
Could you, please, clarify the following points: 1. The Annex D:Third Party file is applicable in case when part of the co-financing is provided by such party out of the applicants (coordinator and applicant). Otherwise, this file should not be attached to the application. Is this correct? 2. Are there requirements or limits regarding the total number of pages or the volume of certain sections of the Annex A Description of the project form? The Third Party file is mandatory to be submitted by the applicant (the coordinator in case of partnership). No particular limits are required for drawing up the proposal.	19/06/2019
some questions about the call in question: the KPIs online form must be completed for each partner, or only by the lead partner? In the case of cross-border activities, should only one form be filled in, with the KPIs broken down for each country involved? It is important to report in the KPI form consolidated data for all relevant activities (meaning we should not care who completes the form as long as the data for the whole project is correctly reported) Indeed, in the case of cross-border activities, only one form must be filled in, with the KPIs broken down for each country involved.	20/06/2019
According to Annex 4 of the call related to KPI, through traditional media campaign, "the volume indicator is the total reach of the news in the media. This indicator is usually provided by the PR intermediary company". Our project under LOT 2 will also include some publications in different print media and during different months/weeks. In order to calculate the total reach, we will add the data provided by the intermediary company for the different months of the year? Is it a double-counting? For example, we do a publication in “X” magazine in January and we are informed that 20.000 people read our magazine. In June, we do another publication in the same magazine and we are informed that 15.000 people read June issue. The total reach is 35.000 people? The same question can also be posed for TV campaign (e.g. audience, etc.). You understanding is correct, the total reach of your project will be 35.000 people. Reach in a given media at a certain time can be added to reach in another or same media in a different period (total media reach)	20/06/2019
1. Is one beneficiary allowed to apply for 2 grants: for Lot 1 and Lot 2? 2. In case of application for Lot 2 - Is a partner form other country required? Does it give any preferences or is not obligatory? 3. Our Foundation realizes a social education campaign, which is proven project and best practice. Can our foundation apply for continuation of this particular campaign? 1. An applicant is allowed to submit a proposal for both lot 1 and lot 2. 2. For lot 2, a partner from another country is not mandatory and does not bring any advantage. Only the activity should take place in at least 2 EU countries. 3. Proposals must comply with eligibility criteria (point 8 of the Guidelines for applicants). For continuation of projects, the principle of non-cumulative award and non-retroactivuty (point 18 of the Guidelines for applicants) musts be respected. As explained in point 12.2. of the Guidelines for applicantes, the awarding of a grant does not establish an entitlement for a grant in subsequent years.	25/06/2019
1. Our lead applicant is a public body that, under Italian financial regulations, cannot recover Vat. What should it provide to support this claim and being able to submit Vat as eligible costs? 2. Our Project falls within Lot 1. Can we choose a sub target within the 6-18 age target group and duly justify it? 1. As indicated in section 15 of the Guidelines, VAT is not eligible, unless the beneficiary can prove that he is unable to recover it according to its national legislation. 2. Yes, you can choose this sub-target.	25/06/2019
1. It is mentioned in the Annex A, under "5. OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL CAPACITY", that section 5.1 must only be filled in if the grant amount requested is exceeding EUR 60.000. Provided that our proposal will be for less than the above sum (the requested amount from EUIPO as well as the entire budget of the project will be less than EUR 60.000), should we file section 5.1 and should we provide any information about financial capacity? 2. In Annex B (Cell 28), could the Indirect costs be less than 7%, ex. 2% or 3% of the total direct costs? 1. If the grant amount requested does not exceed EUR 60.000, we only require the signed Declaration on Honour to cover the financial capacity. 2. The general administrative costs of the beneficiary are foreseen to be covered by this flat rate contribution which is capped at 7%, is an entitlement. But the beneficiary can indeed chose to request less.	25/06/2019
What do you mean for: "Through traditional Media / traditional Media campaigns: The quality indicators are: The percentage of the total reach obtained in “Tier 1” type media. “Tier 1” refers to the “top class” media The percentage of total reach obtained with articles/news whose content was neutral or positive about the subject"? What's Tier 1? Which are "Top class" media? What do you mean for " whose content was neutral or positive about the subject"? By “traditional media” it is meant print, radio, TV or online media and press by opposition to social media. Quality indicators are defined to assess the reach in first class media such as major daily papers, major economic/trade/financial/societal press outlets, well known/with high readership media outlets, as well as the general tone of the article or else. A positive or neutral piece is considered of a better quality than a negative one.	25/06/2019
1) What is meant by "total reach of the news in the media"? The total number of readers (copies sold) or the total number of printed copies 2) What is "The percentage of the total reach"? The percentage of total traditional media readers in relation to printed copies? 3) When is the Call awarded? 1) The total number of readers (copies sold) or the total number of printed copies: reach relate to number of people reached by a certain media ie the audience (this figure could include readership if a print media, page views if an online media etc…). 2) Percentage of reach relates to “what is the share of the audience reached through a particular media/channel”. 3) As announced in article 5 of the Guidelines for applicants, the Office expects to sign the grant agreements in August/September 2019,	26/06/2019
I’d like to know if barter transactions can be a part of own contribution and up to what amount? If by barter transactions you mean in kind contributions, please note that these are not eligible under this call (article 16 of the Guidelines for Applicants),	26/06/2019
1. What are the supporting documents that partners must provide in addition to the letter of mandate to confirm their eligibility like you respond to a question of a candidate? 2. Is it permitted for a partner that is a private company to subcontract an activity to an affiliated company? 3. For proposals with partnerships, the declaration of honor needs to be fulfilled by the coordinator signing on behalf of the partners. However in the declaration of honor document, there is no reference to any partners at all. When the coordinator ticks the boxes in the declaration of honor document, only his name appears and not the one of the partner(s). Is this okay or is there any place in the declaration of honor document that the name(s) of the partner(s) needs to be written? 4. In Annex A, in "10. Previous experience related to the requirements set in section 10.2 of the guidelines for applicants", for a public sector applicant, most previous projects have been implemented by the staff members. As such, they are projects with no contract values, clients etc.. Can we include in this table such actions that have been implemented in-house by staff members? For example would the organization of a big event like a workshop that only lasted one day (of course its preparation demanded several work days) by the staff of the Organization be eligible to be included in this section? 1. The supporting documents listed under section 8.1. Such document should allow to verify that the entity is registered for more than 2 years in one of the 28 Member States. 2. Yes, please refer to section 18.3 in case of subcontracting. 3. At the submission stage only the coordinator must submit the declaration. In case of being awarded, the partners will be requested to submit also a declaration on honour each. 4. Yes, please include as much data related to as many relevant experiences in the framework of this call for proposals.	26/06/2019
Could I please ask, in relation to the requirement for a public entity to provide a "copy of the resolution, decision or other official document establishing the public-law entity" - could you please clarify for me what kind of documents would be acceptable here for a University? One of the listed documents according the national legislation of the country. Such document should allow to verify that the University is registered for more than 2 years in one of the 28 Member States.	27/06/2019
What do you mean for "number of impressions generated by the posts/tweets related to the awareness activity" What's impression? Is the number of times that a certain social object (post, tweet, photo, video) has had the opportunity to be seen by a certain audience? Impressions are the number of times your content is displayed on screen, no matter if it was clicked or not. All social media platforms provide free analytics which track the number of impressions as it a standard measurement for social media content.	27/06/2019

Links

Outils & documents