Why patents are valuable precisely in a transit country
In a series of blog posts, Marco Coolen offers a glimpse into his work as a Dutch and European patent attorney at AOMB.
Published on April 19, 2026
Marco, a patent attorney at AOMB since 2013, shares his expertise on IO+ about patents—how they work, why they matter, and when they lose their value.
The Netherlands has ranked high for years on the world list of exporting countries. That sounds as if an enormous amount is produced here. But whoever looks more closely at the figures sees something else.
A large part of that export is not production, but transit.
Goods enter Europe via the Port of Rotterdam or Schiphol Airport and then travel onward again. Containers are unloaded, redistributed, and forwarded to Germany, France, or other European markets. The Netherlands is therefore less a factory and more a logistical hub. A place where speed, reliability, and scale come together.
Marco Coolen, photo © Bart van Overbeeke
The revolving door of world trade
The Port of Rotterdam and Schiphol Airport actually function as a perfectly orchestrated revolving door for world trade. Ships unload thousands of containers. Cargo aircraft bring goods from all parts of the world. Within a short time, those goods are redistributed again via trucks, inland shipping, or rail.
For companies, that is ideal. Products enter Europe quickly and can be sent directly to different markets. But precisely that logistical strength also makes the Netherlands interesting for something else: protection of intellectual property.
The moment before the market
Many entrepreneurs mainly think of lawsuits between companies when it comes to patents. But a patent can also play a very different role. It can already intervene before a product reaches the market.
When you have a patent in the Netherlands, customs can act against products that infringe your technology. As soon as suspicious goods enter via the port or airport, customs can stop them.
Counterfeits or unauthorized copies are then intercepted before they continue traveling through Europe. That often works much more effectively than trying to repair the damage afterward. Because once products are on the market, they spread quickly. Distributors, webshops, and resellers make it difficult to retrieve everything again.
Logistics as a protection strategy
For companies with international markets, the Netherlands can therefore play a strategic role. Not only as a logistical hub, but also as a control point.
A patent in the Netherlands means that goods entering via these routes can be tackled legally. That provides an extra layer of protection in a region where enormous trade flows converge. Especially when counterfeits come from other parts of the world, that can make a difference.
More than a passageway
So the Netherlands is not only a place where goods pass through. It is also a place where you can influence what does and does not flow through. With the right protection, a logistical hub changes into a strategic defensive point for your technology.
And that shows something interesting. In a world of international trade, protection is not only about where you produce or sell. Sometimes it is precisely about where products pass along the way.
Whoever understands that sees the Netherlands not only as a passageway. But as a place where you can keep control over your innovation, even before it continues traveling out into the world.
The World of Patents
Every week, Marco Coolen takes us to one of his experiences in the world of patents and IP.