e-Office
Action provides faster, more efficient notification to patent applicants
WASHINGTON
- The Commerce Department’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
announced today the implementation of the e-Office Action program following a
successful pilot project. Under the program, patent applicants receive an e-mail
notification of office communications instead of paper mailings. An e-mail is
sent to program participants when new office communications are available for
viewing and downloading in Private PAIR, the patent application information retrieval
system that allows applicants electronic access to the entire file history of
their applications.
“We received very
positive feedback from applicants who participated in the pilot program,”
said Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Acting Director
of the USPTO John Doll. “Not only have we dramatically reduced paper processing
and mailing costs but also expedited notification allowing applicants to take
full advantage of their time period for reply to an office action.”
The
e-Office Action program minimizes the possibility of lost or delayed postal mail
and makes it faster and more efficient for participants to process and docket
USPTO communications in electronic format, thus reducing processing costs. During
the pilot, participants were able to retrieve office communications several days
faster than postal mail. Participants in the pilot program have also suggested
several enhancements to the system which will be under consideration for future
implementation as the IT infrastructure is strengthened.
Participation
in the e-Office Action program is optional and open to any registered attorney
or agent of record, or pro se inventor who is a named inventor, in a patent application
associated with a customer number. Program participants also will have the flexibility
to opt-out of the e-Office Action program at any time and return to receiving
office communications through the postal mail.
The
program includes provisional applications and non-provisional applications including
utility, plant, design, and reissue applications and national stage applications.
International applications, reexamination proceedings, and interference proceedings
are not included in the program.
Full requirements
for e-Office Action program participation, training, and other program resource
information are available at www.uspto.gov/eoa.
For specific questions or suggestions about e-Office Action, please contact the
Patent Electronic Business Center (EBC) Customer Service Center at 866-217-9197
(toll-free) or 571-272-4100 or send an e-mail to ebc@uspto.gov.
NBA
Strategic Partner - United States
Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
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