CPA Global (Now Clarivate): What Changed and What It Offers
Last reviewed October 2026. Clarivate completed its acquisition of CPA Global on 1 October 2020. CPA Global's software and renewal services are now sold under the Clarivate brand (IP management and IP services). This overview is based on the vendor's public materials and industry reporting, not hands-on testing of every feature. Features, ownership and pricing change often — confirm details with the vendor before buying.
CPA Global was a long-established IP management and renewals business founded in Jersey in 1969. Clarivate completed its acquisition of CPA Global on 1 October 2020, and its software and services are now sold under the Clarivate name.
What happened to CPA Global?
CPA Global (originally Computer Patent Annuities) built its business on paying patent and trademark renewal fees for clients around the world, then expanded into IP management software. In 2018 it bought Clarivate's IP management software business, and in 2020 Clarivate in turn acquired CPA Global. If you are searching for "CPA Global" today, you are usually looking for one of Clarivate's IP management products or its renewal services.
Clarivate IP management products
Clarivate sells several IP management systems that trace back to CPA Global and earlier acquisitions. The main ones are:
- IPfolio – IP management for corporations, built on the Salesforce platform. See our IPfolio review.
- FoundationIP – a long-running SaaS IP management system used by corporations and law firms.
- Inprotech – modular IP practice management software aimed at IP law firms.
- Other regional or legacy systems (such as Memotech and Patrawin) that Clarivate continues to support.
Clarivate also offers IP services (patent and trademark renewals, IP data and trademark research through CompuMark, and patent research through Derwent). This page was last checked against Clarivate's public product pages in October 2026; line-ups change, so confirm with Clarivate.
Clarivate legal and IP services
For many organisations the renewals service is the part of CPA Global they knew best: the provider tracks due dates and pays official renewal fees in each country, typically through a portal where the client confirms which rights to keep. When comparing providers, look at fee transparency (official fee vs. service charge vs. currency conversion), the instruction deadline, how abandonment is handled, and how the service feeds data back into your IP management system.
Who it suits
- Large corporations with global patent and trademark portfolios.
- IP law firms needing practice management and docketing (typically Inprotech).
- Teams that want renewals, data and software from one vendor.
Strengths
- Long track record in renewals and global IP data
- Several systems for corporate and law-firm buyers
- Combines software with services and research data
Limitations
- Multiple overlapping products can make the roadmap hard to read
- Quote-based pricing; total cost depends heavily on services used
- Migration from legacy systems needs careful planning
CPA Global vs. Anaqua
Anaqua is the vendor most often shortlisted against Clarivate. Read our Anaqua vs CPA Global (Clarivate) comparison and the IP management software buyer's guide.
Security & Compliance
We have not verified Clarivate's current certifications for each product. Ask for the latest SOC 2 report or ISO 27001 certificate for the specific system you are buying, plus hosting regions and data-retention terms. See our vendor due-diligence guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened to CPA Global?
Clarivate completed its acquisition of CPA Global on 1 October 2020. CPA Global's IP management software and renewal services are now sold under the Clarivate brand.
Is CPA Global the same as Clarivate?
Effectively yes, for buyers today. CPA Global is part of Clarivate, and its products (such as IPfolio, FoundationIP and Inprotech) and renewal services are marketed as Clarivate IP solutions.
What does CPA Global stand for?
The company started as Computer Patent Annuities, reflecting its original business of paying patent renewal (annuity) fees.
How much does CPA Global / Clarivate IP management cost?
Pricing is quote-based and depends on the product, number of users, portfolio size and any renewal or data services included. Ask Clarivate for a written quote.
What are alternatives to CPA Global?
Common alternatives are Anaqua (AQX, PATTSY WAVE), Computer Packages Inc. (CPI), Dennemeyer and, for trademark-focused teams, Alt Legal.