The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and its …

1 The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and its AdvantagesOutline1) What is the PCT?2) Why use the PCT? What are its advantages?3) Recent PCT Developments1) What is the PCT?What is the PCT? A mainly procedural international Treaty facilitating certain steps in the process of obtaining patents internationally More specifically, the PCT establishes a procedure for the filingand processingof a single application for a Patent which has legal effect in the countries which are Treaty members Simplifies the procedure for obtaining Patent protection in many countries, making it more efficient and economical for:(1) users of the Patent system (applicants and inventors).

2 And (2) Patent Offices The decision on granting patents is made exclusively by national or regional Offices in the national phase Signed in June 1970, in Washington, , and became operational in June 1978 with 18 States As of 1 March 2007, the PCT has 137 Contracting StatesWhat is the PCT?=PCTA lbaniaAlgeriaAntigua and BarbudaArmeniaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijan Bahrain BarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswana BrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoCameroonCanadaCentral African RepublicChadChina Colombia Comoros CongoCosta RicaC te d'IvoireCroatiaCubaCyprusCzech RepublicDemocratic People'sRepublic of KoreaDenmarkDominicaDominican Republic (28 May 07)

3 EcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial Guinea EstoniaFinlandFrance,GabonGambiaGeorgia GermanyGhana GreeceGrenadaGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-Bissa u HondurasHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIrel and IsraelItalyJapanKazakhstanKenyaKyrgyzsta nLao People s Dem Lesotho LiberiaLibyan Arab JamahiriyaLiechtenstein LithuaniaLuxembourgMadagascarMalawiMalay siaMaliMalta MauritaniaMexicoMonacoMongoliaMontenegro MoroccoMozambiqueNamibia NetherlandsNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNorwayOmanPa pua New GuineaPhilippines PolandPortugalRepublic of Korea Republic of MoldovaRomaniaRussian FederationSaint LuciaSaint Vincent andthe Grenadines San MarinoSenegalSeychellesSierra

4 LeoneSingaporeSlovakiaSloveniaSouth AfricaSpainSri LankaSudanSwazilandSt. Kitts and NevisSwedenSwitzerlandSyrian Arab RepublicTajikistan The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia TogoTrinidad and Tobago TunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanUgandaUkraineUn ited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited Republic of TanzaniaUnited States of AmericaUzbekistanViet NamYugoslaviaZambiaZimbabweWhat is the PCT?Growth in PCT member States over last 10 years2003 Papua NewGuineaSyrian Arab RepublicEgyptBotswana2002 Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesSeychelles2001 Colombia Ecuador Equatorial Guinea Philippines OmanZambia Tunisia2000 AlgeriaAntigua andBarbudaMozambiqueBelize1999 United Arab EmiratesSouth AfricaCosta RicaDominicaUnited Republic of TanzaniaMorocco1998 Cyprus Croatia Grenada India1997 YugoslaviaGhanaZimbabweSierra LeoneIndonesiaGambiaGuinea-Bissau1996 TurkeyIsraelCubaSaint LuciaBosnia and Herzegovina2004 San Marino2005 ComorosNigeriaLibyan Arab JamahiriyaSt.

5 Kitts and Nevis2006 HondurasEl SalvadorMalaysiaLao People s Democratic RepublicGua temala2007 MaltaBahrainDominican RepublicWhat is the PCT?020000400006000080000100000120000140 00016000078 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 Growth in PCT increase in 2006145,300 (est.) total filings in 2006 What is the PCT?05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,000 35,00040,00045,00050,000US JP DE KR FR GB NL CN CH SE IT CA AU FI ILInternational applications received by country of origin in 2006 What is the PCT?

6 Filing TrendsCountry of Origin20022003200420052006 Change(est.)Comparedwith 2005 United States of America41,29641,02843,35046,69749, ,06317,41420,26324,84126, ,32614,66215,21816,00016, of Korea2,5202,9493,5584,6885, ,0895,1715,1855,7415, Kingdom5,3765,2065,0265,0855, ,9774,4794,2854,5164, ,0181,2951,7062,4933, ,7552,8612,8993,2773, ,9902,6122,8502,8733, ,9822,1632,1892,3452, ,2602,2702,1052,3202, ,7591,6801,8371,9982, ,7621,5571,6721,8901, ,1741,1301,2271,4581, Others8,0458,7229,254 10,2789, ,392 115,199 122,624 136,500 145, : WIPO Statistics DatabaseHighest increases from China, Rep. of Korea, Israel & ItalyPCT Income/WIPO IncomePCT Income as % of total WIPO Income 0100200300400500600700800'02-'03'04-'05' 06-'07'08-'09 (Est.)

7 '10-'11 (Est.)Non-PCTPCT74%78%75%75%75%The PCT System--typical use, in more detail(months)File PCTapplication12030 International search report & written opinion1618 Internationalpublication(optional)Filede mand forInternationalpreliminaryexaminationFi le localapplicationEnternationalphase2228(o ptional)International preliminary report on patentabilityTypically a national Patent application in the home country of the applicantWhat is the PCT?The PCT System--typical use, in more detail(months)File PCTapplication12030 International search report & written opinion1618 Internationalpublication(optional)Filede mand forInternationalpreliminaryexaminationFi le localapplicationEnternationalphase2228(o ptional)International preliminary report on patentabilityTypically filed in same national Patent office--one set of fees, one language, one set of formality requirements--and legal effect in all PCT StatesWhat is the PCT?

8 The PCT System--typical use, in more detail(months)File PCTapplication12030 International search report & written opinion1618 Internationalpublication(optional)Filede mand forInternationalpreliminaryexaminationFi le localapplicationEnternationalphase2228(o ptional)International preliminary report on patentabilityReport on state of the art (prior art documents and their relevance) + initial patentability opinionWhat is the PCT?The PCT System--typical use, in more detail(months)File PCTapplication12030 International search report & written opinion1618 Internationalpublication(optional)Filede mand forInternationalpreliminaryexaminationFi le localapplicationEnternationalphase2228(o ptional)International preliminary report on patentabilityDisclosing to world content of application in standardized wayWhat is the PCT?

9 The PCT System--typical use, in more detail(months)File PCTapplication12030 International search report & written opinion1618 Internationalpublication(optional)Filede mand forInternationalpreliminaryexaminationFi le localapplicationEnternationalphase2228(o ptional)International preliminary report on patentabilityRequest an additional patentability analysis on basis of amended applicationWhat is the PCT?The PCT System--typical use, in more detail(months)File PCTapplication12030 International search report & written opinion1618 Internationalpublication(optional)Filede mand forInternationalpreliminaryexaminationFi le localapplicationEnternationalphase2228(o ptional)International preliminary report on patentabilityAdditional patentability analysis, designed to assist in national phase decision-makingWhat is the PCT?

10 The PCT System--typical use, in more detail(months)File PCTapplication12030 International search report & written opinion1618 Internationalpublication(optional)Filede mand forInternationalpreliminaryexaminationFi le localapplicationEnternationalphase2228(o ptional)International preliminary report on patentabilityExpress intention and take steps to pursue to grant in various statesWhat is the PCT?(2) Why use the PCT? What are its advantages?1. brings the world within reach2. postpones the major costs associated with internationalizing a Patent application3. provides a strong basis for patenting decisions4.