In this paper, the issue of the deliberate aging of products by manufacturers is discussed. Deliberate aging consists in intentionally planning or designing a product with an artificially limited lifetime in order to force consumers to replace it faster. The resulting rapid acceleration of the cycle of obtaining and utilizing consumer goods has serious consequences in the form of negative externalities. For this reason, the conscious aging of products is now recognized as the cause of unjustified consumption, generating huge economic and social costs and leading to the devastation of the natural environment and excessive exploitation of natural resources. Thus, it is in clear contradiction to the model of sustainable development. The aim of this paper was to identify the purchasing attitudes of buyers in the durable goods market. For its implementation, a pilot questionnaire study, which covered a representative group of 354 respondents, was carried out. The results indicate that the factors that influence the purchase of restitution goods depend on the type of product and the consumer’s income. At the same time, about two thirds of the respondents recognized the problem of the deliberate aging of products. In their opinion, the goods produced in the autarkic economy were more durable and their life cycle was much longer. The results obtained require further empirical verification carried out in comparative studies.

Background: The implementation of the EU climate and energy policy, along with changes in the legal environment, has led to a significant increase in energy prices in Poland. Consequently, energy expenditures are now a larger part of household budgets. These rising energy costs and the evolving legal landscape are compelling households to invest in energy-saving solutions and modify their energy consumption habits. This article aims to identify the activities of households in Poland regarding the rationalization of energy expenditures. It formulates the following research hypothesis: households invest in energy-saving appliances to rationalize energy expenditures and/or change their behaviors to reduce energy consumption. Methods: The paper is based on primary research conducted using an online questionnaire survey on a sample of 331 respondents in Poland in March and April 2023. Results: A classification tree algorithm was used to identify the level of investment activities and behavioral changes made by households to reduce energy expenditures. The authors found that low-income households and people who fear further energy price increases are the first of all to change their behaviors for more energy-efficient ones. Medium- and high-income households take investment measures. They replace household appliances with more energy-efficient ones and install heat pumps and photovoltaic panels. These investments are motivated by responsible consumption, environmental protection, cleanliness, and the ease of use of the appliances.

Discussions concerning patenting of pharmaceutical products require a particularly careful selection of postulates as they affect the fundamental area of human functioning — the issue of health and life. Both supporters of maintaining exclusive rights and their adversaries, therefore, reach for arguments that justify the validity of their position. These arguments are very diverse, but both sides of the ongoing debate mention primarily those of an economic and legal nature. The first of these are related to emphasizing the amount of necessary financial effort and the need to motivate entities to undertake research. Postulates of the second type point to the possibility of applying exceptions to generally applicable regulations. The purpose of the publication is to picture arguments of one of the parties — those that sanction the maintenance of existing solutions within the scope of exclusive rights for pharmaceutical products. The research method is a critical analysis of the source literature in the fields of economics and law as well as jurisprudence study of cases. The conclusions point to the need for further, compatible problem-taking, both on the literature level and through specific solutions of jurisprudence practice, without which a consensus seems impossible.

The publication addresses the problem of the patent gap from a regional perspective. For the purposes of the publication, it is understood as the time difference between the inventions of Czech companies and technologically advanced solutions patented by the foreign companies. The patent gap problem is particularly important in the field of biotechnology, which is characterized by high dynamics and compatibility of entities’ inventive activity. It is therefore important that the absorption and diffusion of knowledge necessary for its implementation proceed quickly and at a similar level. The aim of the article is to determine the degree of patent gap between the inventions of Czech biotechnology companies and patented solutions of foreign entities. The research method used for the purpose of this article is the method of patent citation analysis. It consists of quantitative and qualitative analysis of patent citations, i.e. references contained in the technical documentation, and more precisely relation between the description of a new invention and previously known technical solutions, or the source literature. For the purpose of the research, it was assumed that the shorter the time elapsed between the release of a solution or publication and their citation in another patented invention, the smaller the degree of patent gap. The Espacenet patent information database was used as a source for obtaining the necessary technical documentation of inventions. The research results lead to the following conclusions. First, they point to a significant geographical diversification of the sources for obtaining technical knowledge—Czech biotechnological companies use both domestic and foreign solutions in developing inventions. Secondly, they suggest a high degree of internationalization, as to a large extent the basis for patented inventions involves foreign solutions. Thirdly, the observed patent gap is the strongest in the case of the scientific research results and the knowledge contained in the technical documentation of domestic and American companies’ inventions. However, these inventions have to be entered in the WO patent database. The research results also indicate that using external sources of technical knowledge requires not only the creation of appropriate technical potential (research and commercial infrastructure), but also the time necessary to acquire and process new knowledge (absorption capacity).

Celem artykułu jest przedstawienie najważniejszych czynników konsumpcji leków w Polsce. Artykuł powstał na podstawie badań pierwotnych przeprowadzonych na próbie 428 respondentów w marcu i kwietniu 2020 roku w Polsce metodą ankiety internetowej. Zastosowano algorytm drzew klasyfikacyjnych w celu wyodrębnienia kategorii respondentów, którzy spożywali leki na receptę oraz leki dostępne bez recepty (over-the-counter - OTC). Ponadto zaproponowano regresję logistyczną do oceny zależności między przyjmowaniem leków a stanem zdrowia, zachowaniami prozdrowotnymi, wybranymi preferencjami w wyborach żywieniowych oraz cechami demograficznymi. W pracy zidentyfikowano czynniki związane ze stylem życia, które determinują poziom spożycia leków. Autorzy argumentują, że kobiety w wieku 55 lat i więcej znacznie zwiększają spożycie leków na receptę i bez recepty, aby zachować zdrowie i aktywny tryb życia. Co więcej, regularnie wykonują profilaktyczne badania laboratoryjne i uważnie czytają informacje na etykietach żywności przed zakupem produktów spożywczych. W tym przekrojowym badaniu twierdzimy, że kobiety przyjmują więcej leków, bardziej krytycznie podchodzą do swojego zdrowia i bardziej dbają o aktywne starzenie się. Nawet jeśli nie wskazują na problemy zdrowotne, 50% z nich nadal zażywa leki. Wśród mężczyzn 68% nie zgłasza dolegliwości zdrowotnych, a w tej grupie ponad 30% zażywa leki. Wydaje się, że mężczyźni w mniejszym stopniu łączą zażywanie leków ze zdrowiem i aktywnym starzeniem się. Badanie identyfikuje klasy respondentów, którzy konsumują leki na receptę. Są to osoby, które mają problemy zdrowotne i korzystają z profilaktyki zdrowotnej, wykonując regularne badania lekarskie. Im częściej wykonywane są badania lekarskie, tym więcej przyjmowanych jest leków. Grupa osób często spożywających leki bez recepty uważnie czyta informacje na etykietach żywności przed zakupem i systematycznie wykonuje profilaktyczne badania laboratoryjne. Generalnie konsumpcja zarówno leków na receptę, jak i leków OTC w Polsce wzrasta wraz z wiekiem respondentów. Problemy zdrowotne determinują konsumpcję leków wydawanych na receptę, podczas gdy płeć jest najważniejszym czynnikiem wpływającym na konsumpcję leków wydawanych bez recepty.

The aim of the paper is to analyze the use of existing legally protected solutions an. publications made available through patent systems for the development of further biotechnological inventions. For its implementation, was conducted research based on the so-called patent citations of two kinds - to literature and previously published, other patents. For the needs of the paper, technical documentation of 88 patents in the resources of the Polish Patent Office and Espacenet was analyzed. The study includes 40 Polish biotechnology companies with significant innovation activity. The results of the conducted research allow to formulate two conclusions. First, the knowledge obtained from patent resources plays an important role in the innovation process of inventions in the biotechnology sector. Secondly, this knowledge is characterized by a high degree of internationalization, first of all are cited foreign inventions and source literature, domestic citations appear relatively rarely. Among observed references, citing American achievements plays a dominant role – this applies to both literature and inventions, which suggests that the US patent system is the main source of patent knowledge for Polish biotechnology companies.