Hello, PCT enthusiasts. Today WIPO has placed into service its new version of the PCT Applicant’s Guide. (WIPO has dubbed today’s new version as “the eGuide“.) You can see it here. Importantly, the legacy version of the Applicant’s Guide is still available. You can see it here. Continue reading “See the new version of the PCT Applicant’s Guide”
Making your office VPN situation faster and easier to use
We recently started using a new VPN solution at OPLF. It is faster than our previous VPN solution and has lower latency. It has no recurring cost and the one-time cost to get it working was under $100. In this article I will describe this new VPN solution in detail. I will also explain how you could set this up yourself in your own office. Continue reading “Making your office VPN situation faster and easier to use”
Monaco Industrial Property Office will soon be trendy, modern and up-to-date
The Monaco Industrial Property Office of the Business Development Agency, having made plans to join the DAS system, will become trendy, modern, and up-to-date on February 1, 2023. Continue reading “Monaco Industrial Property Office will soon be trendy, modern and up-to-date”
Today is the day — only 3 months to respond to a trademark Office Action
Yes, folks, today is the day. Starting today, you only get three months to respond to a USPTO trademark Office Action instead of the usual six months. I told you all about this back on October 12, 2022 (blog article). This article hopefully answers some of your questions about this change. Continue reading “Today is the day — only 3 months to respond to a trademark Office Action”
How to get the “+Request PCT Link” button
I posted a few days ago (blog article) that the EPO had set up a way for users of ISA/EP and IPEA/EP to receive correspondence (such as International Search Reports and Written Opinions) instantly and electronically, which might for some users be preferable to having to wait a long time for such correspondence to show up in slow postal mail. In that posting I described my own lack of success in setting up such things, particularly because an important button called “+Request PCT Link” was missing in the EPO system. I have heard back from the EPO people about this. It turns out you have to ask for this button. In today’s blog article I offer more information about this new system, that I have heard from the EPO people. Continue reading “How to get the “+Request PCT Link” button”
How pencil tire pressure gauges work
I realized that for quite a long time, I had sort of wondered how the tire pressure gauges work that have a thing that pops out. Clicking around on the Internet, I have now learned what the common name is for that kind of tire pressure gauge. It is called a “pencil gauge”. And I have learned how they work. Continue reading “How pencil tire pressure gauges work”
EPO’s new system for PCT applicants to receive ISR/WOs electronically
(Update: there is news about how to get the elusive “+Request PCT Link” button — see blog article.)
(Update: EPO people have provided a summary page about how to do this ISA/EP and IPEA/EP stuff, that is linked here and that I have archived here.)
PCT applicants who are located outside of Europe, and who pick ISA/EP as their ISA, have for some years now faced a frustrating situation: ISA/EP only sends out its communications by postal mail, not electronically. A couple of days ago I attended a webinar presented by four nice people at the EPO, in which they explained how their new system will work that will permit applicants to receive International Search Reports and Written Opinions (and other ISA communications) electronically instead of on paper. This article briefly summarizes my notes from that webinar. Continue reading “EPO’s new system for PCT applicants to receive ISR/WOs electronically”
Sign up for tomorrow’s EPO webinar on PCT
(Update: the webinar took place and I have written an article about it.)
Well, folks, maybe you knew about this imminent webinar a long time ago, but somehow I only learned about it today. You know how you hate it that EPO only sends ISR/WOs out by postal mail? Not electronically? Well, I gather EPO intends to drag itself into the previous decade and plans to provide some electronic way to receive your ISR/WOs.
Yes, an extremely important webinar will take place about 24 hours from now. Yes, I am giving you a mere 24 hours’ advance notice on this one. Sorry about that. Continue reading “Sign up for tomorrow’s EPO webinar on PCT”
A movie about counterfeit penicillin
Intellectual property is all around us, in so many ways. One of my favorite films, made in 1949, has counterfeit penicillin as its MacGuffin. Who will be the first reader to name the film and, perhaps, to post a comment about it? Continue reading “A movie about counterfeit penicillin”
Getting a prompt Filing Receipt in a 371 case?
In the community of US practitioners who regularly enter the US national phase from a PCT application, it is a well-known problem that it takes an unreasonably long time for the USPTO to mail out a Filing Receipt. There is, I am sorry to say, a dirty little secret way to get prompt filing receipt in such cases. Normally I do not make use of it, but just now I plan to use it in one of my cases. Continue reading “Getting a prompt Filing Receipt in a 371 case?”