A Legal Twist on File-Sharing: The Making of SKF’s Tribute to The Pirate Bay

​On paper, the brief was about sustainability and innovation. In reality, it became an exercise in balancing corporate responsibility with internet counter-culture. SKF, the Swedish bearing and seal manufacturing giant, wanted to challenge the industry norm of hoarding intellectual property. Their answer was ‘The Patent Bay’ – a fully legal platform designed to share patents that can lower environmental impact.

The project began with a clear identification of the enemy: the hoarding of knowledge.

“It really started with a simple intention on our side: to highlight the growing issue of protectionism and how it can slow progress for everyone,” Daniel Sjöstrand, head of brand strategy and global campaigns at SKF, tells LBB. “As part of that, we felt it was only right to share one of our own patents – Arctic15, a steel alloy developed for next generation aircraft engines designed to cut emissions by up to 25%.”

The company manufactures and supplies bearings, seals, lubrication and lubrication systems, maintenance products, mechatronics products, power transmission products, condition monitoring systems and related services globally. So you might think its designs are something it would guard fiercely.

“Against the growing trend of keeping things behind locked doors, we wanted to create an open home for innovation and sustainability-driven tech – a space where anyone can contribute to progress,” Daniel adds. “Our hope is that by sharing openly, others will join in, proving that collective innovation can create momentum far beyond what any single company could achieve alone.”

Finding the Strategic Fit

For the agency, NORD, the challenge was ensuring this high-minded purpose resonated with a B2B audience that might be skeptical of marketing fluff.

“It’s a strategic fit in several ways,” explains Carl Laurén, art director at NORD. “First, while SKF makes bearings, seals and lubrication, they ultimately sell something much bigger: the ability to fight friction and help move industries – and even our society – forward. With this initiative, they wanted to highlight the broader ways they’re driving real progress and show they’re more than just what they sell. So, instead of creating a traditional B2B campaign, we built an open platform for sharing innovation and technology that can help reduce environmental impact.”

Carl notes that this wasn't about a quick hit. “It’s a long-term initiative and the kind we believe will catch the attention of B2B audiences – and hopefully spark conversations well beyond them as well,” he says. “On top of that, their clients and suppliers can also benefit from what’s available on the site. Now, they’re not only able to purchase great products from SKF – they can also access patents for sustainable innovations, all for free.”

A Pirate’s Life for a B2B Giant

Once the strategy of "radical openness" was set, the creative team looked for a cultural hook that represented the ultimate form of sharing.

“Once we understood SKF’s ambition to share one of their own patents and spark a broader movement, we started exploring how that behaviour could be encouraged on a larger scale,” says Linn Löfholm, junior art director at NORD. “That’s when we drew inspiration from a digital legend built around the free sharing of information, culture, and intellectual property – and The Patent Bay was born. And honestly, we at NORD feel lucky to work with a client who, in an otherwise fairly uniform B2B landscape, dares to do something bold and memorable.”

The execution required a delicate balance. It had to evoke the rebellious spirit of file-sharing website The Pirate Bay without alienating corporate stakeholders or feeling unprofessional.

“Besides the name, which is an obvious hint we hope no one misses, we wanted to make the initiative feel digital-first, with just the right amount of The Pirate Bay touch,” says Ida Nordeng, junior copywriter at NORD.

Ida explains that the team sweated the small stuff to land the aesthetic. “Throughout, we worked hard on details such as wording and tone to visual cues – but we also took bigger swings with formats like the open letters used to reach out to stakeholders. We know our predecessor had a soft spot for those,” she says. “The first major challenge was finding the right tone for the idea – where SKF and clean tech meet the world of The Pirate Bay and internet culture. Not the most obvious combination, but we think we found a good balance. SKF’s existing typeface and blue colour actually turned out to be a perfect fit for this concept.”

Crafting the Platform

The website itself had to carry the weight of the campaign. “Then, of course, the website became a major focus,” Ida says. “Almost every campaign has its own site these days, but in this case, it was especially crucial, because the site itself acts as a core asset. We drew inspiration from The Pirate Bay here too, keeping it clean, simple, and straight to the point. At the same time, we wanted it to feel like its own entity – initiated by SKF, but existing as its own ‘organism’, so to speak.”

Visually, this meant looking backward to look forward. “For The Patent Bay, we aimed for a digital look with a subtle nod to The Pirate Bay,” says Linn. “SKF’s typeface already worked in that direction, so we added code details and nostalgic Amiga-inspired blue windows. They fit perfectly with SKF’s new identity and became a key visual element.”

“The goal was a simple, eye-catching design that also worked for public messages,” Linn adds. “We avoided ‘over-designing’ it, relying almost entirely on the font and the blue colour to build every asset. Ironically, keeping things simple was the hardest part – when you limit your tools, every choice matters. We’re proud that we didn’t break our own rules, and grateful that SKF was brave enough to trust us when we said, ‘We don’t need a big headline.’”

Getting the Message Out

When it came to the ads driving traffic to the site, the copy needed to walk a fine line. “Finally, there were our targeted ads,” Ida says. “For these, we wanted to develop a communication style that had a spark of The Patent Bay, while speaking directly to very specific people and businesses. The original Pirate Bay might have expressed itself through long, fiery messages, but this time we needed a tone that felt appropriate for a major brand like SKF – not just an angry coder.”

The media strategy was just as provocative as the creative concept, involving guerrilla-style placement near competitors to encourage them to join the cause.

“Besides finding the right balance between clean tech and piracy, there was also a challenge in identifying the right placements and contexts for our ads,” says Carl. “Tracking down an OOH spot near one of SKF’s biggest competitors felt almost like a mission. It took patience, plenty of teamwork between us, SKF and the media agency Wade – but we got there in the end.”

Linn elaborates on the targeting strategy: “We wanted to reach out to other individuals and companies that are, or have been, frontrunners themselves. But also, well, basically anyone who holds a patent that could help advance sustainable technology. We began close to home, within the industry, contacting SKF’s biggest competitors – those we knew could benefit from both this innovation and The Patent Bay itself. We then reached out to other major companies and potential patent holders, as well as newsrooms, asking them to help us spread the word about this important – and completely legal – twist on file-sharing.”

Open for Business

The campaign is now live, and the platform is open. For SKF, this isn't just a marketing stunt; it is an ongoing attempt to shift the industry mindset.

“We hope that by sharing one of our own patents first, we’re setting an example that encourages others to do the same,” says Daniel. “Beyond that, we’re actively driving participation through direct outreach and broader advocacy. We’ve engaged our network and industry contacts, and several promising conversations are already underway. Mölnlycke Health Care was among the first to join, contributing a patent aimed at accelerating sustainable healthcare innovation. We’re also supporting the effort with targeted open-letter ads and by giving visibility to everyone who participates, both on the platform and through our channels.”

Daniel emphasises that they are in this for the long haul. “This is a long-term commitment for us. We’ll continue building momentum and bringing more partners with us, while using our voice in the industry – from having our CEO write an op-ed for Sweden’s largest business daily to our recent presence at COP30 – all to champion the idea that shared innovation can drive real, collective progress.”

And for those reading this who might be sitting on the next big sustainable breakthrough, Ida has a final message. “Hi there, reader! If you happen to represent a company that holds patents for sustainable innovation, why not share one of them at The Patent Bay? It’ll do us all good – companies, industries, and ultimately: the planet. It’ll also make us very happy to have managed to collect a few patents through this article. Thanks so much. See you at The Patent Bay!”