November 20, 2006
The USPTO announced on Friday that it and the European Patent Office (EPO) will be launching a new service to allow priority documents to be exchanged electronically between the two patent offices. This service, which is announced as “pav[ing] the way for faster and more efficient processing in each office,” will be free of charge to applicants and will apply to priority documents that “have to be filed when applicants wish to claim an earlier filing date in one patent office based on a prior filing in another.” According to USPTO Director and Under Secretary of Commerce Jon Dudas, “[b]y leveraging our electronic file management systems, we can streamline our internal processing while providing our applicants with the substantial benefits of reduced expenses and paperwork.” This service is expected to be available starting in January 2007.
USPTO Announcement: LINK
European Patent Office Website: LINK
USPTO Announcement: LINK
European Patent Office Website: LINK
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