Requirements
Beneficiaries of Horizon Europe and Horizon 2020 funding must carry out activities to increase the impact of their project results:
- They must share research results with the scientific community, commercial players, civil society and policymakers (‘dissemination’).
- They must also take action to use their project results for commercial purposes, to tackle societal problems or in policymaking (‘exploitation’).
Dissemination and exploitation are a requirement as per your grant agreement, in addition to your communication activities. Check our quick guide on communication, dissemination and exploitation.
Free-of-charge dissemination and exploitation services
The European Commission offers various free-of-charge services to support your dissemination and exploitation activities:
Open Research Europe platform: An open access, publishing platform for scientific papers for Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe beneficiaries, including an open peer review and article revision.
Horizon Results platform: A platform for showcasing your research results, finding collaboration opportunities and getting inspired by the results of others.
Horizon Results Booster: Free consulting services including a portfolio dissemination and exploitation strategy, business plan development and go-to-market support.
European Standardisation Booster Service for EU Projects (an action supported by the European Research Area HORIZON-WIDERA-2021-ERA-01 Call, managed by REA): supports Horizon Europe and H2020 projects to contribute to standardisation in Europe and beyond.
Innovation radar: An initiative that identifies high-potential innovations, based on a data-driven methodology, and assists EU-funded researchers and innovators in reaching the market with their innovation.
Dealing with non-Commission publishing houses
You might be approached by publishers – sometimes in an aggressive way - who offer expensive services for publishing a research article. They might claim that they work for or with the European Commission and that the fees can be recovered through your grant as 'eligible costs'.
Please note that we will always inform you if a contractor genuinely working for the European Commission is to contact you. Legitimate contractors do not charge any fees to the beneficiaries.
Please refer to the European Commission’s free-of-charge dissemination and exploitation services. If you need further advice on the matter, please contact your Project Officer.
Further advice and resources for beneficiaries
Webinar: Dissemination & Exploitation in Horizon Europe
How to communicate your project
Online manual for 2021-2027 programmes (including Horizon Europe)
Open access to scientific information
Intellectual Property: European IP helpdesk
Horizon IP scan for small and medium-sized enterprises
Contribute to the European Commission’s public consultations