PCT Update 2013

MondaySeptember 9, 201315.00-16.00 Geneva time

Quan-Ling Sim

Head, PCT Outreach and User Relations Section

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PCT Update 2013

Update on PCT Membership and StatisticsPCT Rule Changes (January 1, 2013)PCT BriefePCTLicensing of PCT ApplicationsThird Party ObservationsPCT-PPHArbitration and Mediation Center Fee ReductionsMisleading WIPO InvitationsPCT Working GroupSupplementary International SearchPCT Training Options

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148 PCT Contracting States (1)

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148 PCT Contracting States (2)AlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaAntigua and BarbudaArmeniaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahrainBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBrunei DarussalamBulgariaBurkina FasoCameroonCanadaCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCongoCosta RicaCôte d'IvoireCroatia

CubaCyprusCzech RepublicDemocratic People's Republic of KoreaDenmarkDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEstoniaFinlandFranceGabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGreeceGrenadaGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauHondurasHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIran

IrelandIsraelItalyJapanKazakhstanKenyaKyrgyzstanLao People’s Dem Rep.LatviaLesothoLiberiaLibyaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaliMaltaMauritaniaMexicoMonacoMongoliaMontenegroMoroccoMozambiqueNamibiaNetherlandsNew ZealandNicaraguaNiger

SudanSwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandSyrian Arab RepublicTajikistanThailandThe former Yugoslav Republic of MacedoniaTogoTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited Republic of TanzaniaUnited States of AmericaUzbekistanViet NamZambiaZimbabwe

NigeriaNorwayOmanPanamaPapua New GuineaPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalQatarRepublic of Korea Republic of MoldovaRomaniaRwandaRussian FederationSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSan MarinoSao Tomé e PrincipeSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovakiaSloveniaSouth AfricaSpainSri Lanka

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Countries not yet PCT Contracting StatesAfghanistanAndorraArgentinaBahamasBangladeshBhutanBoliviaBurundiCambodiaCape VerdeDemocratic Republic of CongoDjiboutiEritreaEthiopiaFijiGuyana

HaitiIraqJamaicaJordanKiribatiKuwaitLebanonMaldivesMarshall IslandsMauritiusMicronesiaMyanmarNauruNepalPakistanPalau

ParaguaySamoaSolomon IslandsSomaliaSouth SudanSurinameTimor-LesteTongaTuvaluUruguayVanuatuVenezuelaYemen(45)

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PCT Applications (2012)

Record filings in 2012

Over 195,000 applications filed

Close to 7% increase over 2011

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20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000

160000

180000

200000

78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

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Filings by Country of Origin (2012)

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10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

60000

US JP DE CN KR FR GB CH NL SE IT CA FI AU ES

Examples of increases in certain national Offices

NL: +14%CN: +13.6%KR: +13.4%FI: +13.2%JP: +12.3%

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Top 20 Fields of Technology (2012)

0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000 12000 14000

HandlingChemical engineering

Other special machinesMechanical elements

Basic materials chemistryTelecommunications

OpticsCivil engineering

BiotechnologyEngines, pumps, turbines

Organic fine chemistryAudio-visual technology

SemiconductorsMeasurement

TransportPharmaceuticals

Medical technologyComputer technologyDigital communication

Electrical machinery

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Top PCT Applicants (2012)

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PCT Rule Changes 2013

Changes related to the America Invents Act in the US

Corresponding PCT practice changes introduced on September 16, 2012

Applications can be filed in the name of an entity in all PCT Contracting States including the US (e.g., corporate applicant, university)

Consequential changes to the Regulations were approved by the PCT Assembly in September 2012 and entered into force on January 1, 2013

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PCT Brief

New resource that contains a high-level overview of recent and future developments in the PCT

http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/brief

Particularly useful for managers and attorneys

Hyperlinks to more in-depth information, databases, videos, FAQs, etc.

Updated as significant changes occur

Subscriptions to the PCT Brief mailing list

http://www.wipo.int/lists/subscribe/pct-brief

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ePCT (1)

WIPO online service that provides secure electronic access to the files of PCT applications maintained by the International Bureau

Two distinct modes

Private services (WIPO user account, digital certificate)

Public services (WIPO user account)

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ePCT (2) – Main Features

Up-to-date bibliographic data and status informationView processing status of documentsUploaded documents are immediately visible in the file viewAutomatic generation of a signed cover letter for uploaded documents to comply with PCT Rule 92.1 requirementManage access rightsDownload individual documents or packagesSecure messaging for contact with WIPO Processing TeamLeave private notes invisible to the IB and not appearing as part of the application fileHistory of actions takenCustomizable notification preferences (e-mail warnings)Range of online actions, e.g., withdrawals, Rule 92bis changes, filing of demands, etc.

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ePCT (3) – Future Improvements

Web-based filing

Services for Offices including receiving Office hosting

Look and feel of the interface including multiple languages

Real-time credit card payment for all fee types

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ePCT (4) - Training

Webinars on ePCT over the past year

Past recordings and presentations available from the PCT webinar archives

http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/seminar/webinars/index.html

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Licensing Indications

Available since January 1, 2012Applicants can indicate the availability of a PCT application for licensing

On-line action in ePCTForm PCT/IB/382 “Request for indication of availability for licensing purposes”

Can be submitted at any time prior to the expiration of 30 months from the priority dateThe licensing-related information will be

Published in the application bibliographic dataSearchable in PATENTSCOPE

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Third Party Observations (1)

Available since July 1, 2012

Allows third parties to submit prior art observations relevant to novelty and inventive step

Limited to the international phase

Objective is to provide national Offices with the most complete information possible on which to base their decisions

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Third Party Observations (2)Main Features

Can be submitted using ePCT or PATENTSCOPE (re-direct link to ePCT)

Free-of-charge

Third party identity may be withheld from the applicant and the public

Submissions possible until the expiration of 28 months from the priority date

Third party supplied documents will not be available via PATENTSCOPE but will be made available to International Authorities and national Offices

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Third Party Observations (3)Role of the International Bureau

Checks for spam

Notifies the applicant of submission of observations

Makes observations available in PATENTSCOPE

Sends to national Offices observations, cited documents, and applicant responses

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PCT-PPH (1)

Accelerated processing in the national phase on the basis of a positive PCT work product

Written opinion, IPRP Ch.I or Ch.II

In 2012, 38 PCT-PPH pilots were active, with the participation of 21 Offices, including 14 International Authorities

More information

http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/filing/pct_pph.html

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PCT-PPH (2)

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PCT-PPH (3)

Popular with PCT applicants

Results in faster processing and grants in the national phase

Participating offices are working on streamlining and simplifying the multitude of co-existing bilateral PPH arrangements, e.g., common requirements, forms, procedures, etc.

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Arbitration and Mediation Center Fee Reductions (AMC) (1)

25% fee reduction for the AMC where at least one party to the dispute has been named as an applicant or inventor in a published PCT application

Fee calculator

http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/calculator/adr.jsp

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Arbitration and Mediation Center Fee Reductions (2)

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Misleading WIPO Invitations

http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/warning/pct_warning.html

WIPO has issued warnings regarding misleading invitations for payment of fees

The following entities have also been informed

IP Offices

IP Associations

Banking industry

Government agencies

Bring to the attention of WIPO and to consumer protection authorities instances of misleading invitations

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PCT Working Group - May 2013 (1)

Forum for Offices and governments to discuss and exchange views on improvements to the PCT systemTwo main outcomes from the May 2013 meeting

Making available of the written opinion at 18 months (as of the publication date)Top-up searching during the international preliminary examining procedure (Ch. II)

Uncover any prior art not available at the time of the international searchConcerns particularly “secret” prior art which are patent applications published on or after the priority date of the PCT application but have an earlier priority dateNot necessary if the IPEA believes that the top-up search would serve no useful purpose

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PCT Sequence Listing Standard

WIPO Standard ST.14

PCT Minimum Documentation

PCT Fee Reductions

Coordination of Technical Assistance

PCT Kaizen

PCT 20/20

Requirements/Procedures for ISA/IPEA Appointments

Clarifying the Incorporation by Reference Procedure

Mandatory Response to Negative Comments in the National Phase

Formal Integration of the Patent Prosecution Highway into the PCT

Mandatory Recordation of Search Strategy

Collaborative Search and Examination (CSE)

Other proposals and issues requiring further discussion, consultation, and development

http://www.wipo.int/meetings/en/details.jsp?meeting_id=28622

PCT Working Group - May 2013 (2)

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Supplementary International Search

PCT Working Group also discussed the supplementary international search system

Introduced on January 1, 2009

Request a supplementary search by a different International Searching Authority

Usage so far has been relatively modest

Service currently offered by AT, EP, FI, SE, RU and XN

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PCT Training Options

http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/

PCT Distance Learning Course available in all 10 PCT publication languages

PCT Webinars

Free updates on developments in PCT procedures

Available upon request for companies or law firms

On-site PCT seminars and training sessions

Annual advanced PCT seminar at WIPO in October

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Questions / Feedback

PCT Outreach and User Relations SectionE-mail: pct.our@wipo.int

PCT Information ServiceTelephone: (+41-22) 338 83 38 Facsimile: (+41-22) 338 83 39 E-mail: pct.infoline@wipo.int

Today’s webinar and slides will be available for download from the PCT webinar page over the next few days:

http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/seminar/webinars/index.html

Survey on today’s webinar presentation