On Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker announced the appointment of Russell Slifer as the next Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”). Slifer left his role as the Director of the USPTO’s Rocky Mountain Regional Office…
Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) recently announced that the United States has deposited its instrument of ratification to the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs (“Hague Agreement”) with the World Intellectual Property Organization…
Alexandria, Virginia – A two-day event to be held by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) will include patent-quality discussions among USPTO leadership as well as experts from industry, academia, and the public. The USPTO will host this public meeting on Wednesday, March 25…
On January 17, 2015, the United States Patent and Trademark Office issued the January 2015 Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure (“TMEP”), which incorporates changes made in accordance with the following rules: • Renaming of Express Mail® to Priority Mail Express®, published October 22, 2014 at 79 FR 63036; • Reduction…
Alexandria, Virgina – The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) will host an external stakeholder forum (please see below) on January 29, 2015, from 1 to 3 pm, to discuss issues related to its e-filing system or ESTTA (Electronic System for Trademark Trials and Appeals). The United States Patent and…
Alexandria, Virginia – As part of the Trademark Operation’s continuing series of roundtable discussions to gather stakeholder views on important issues, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) will be holding a roundtable discussion of suggestions for ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the trademark register on Friday, December…
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The USPTO will offer a forum, presented both on-site and webcast, for stakeholders seeking patent protection in the cybersecurity and network-security sectors. The U.S. Department of Commerce‘s United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) will host its first Cybersecurity Partnership Meeting tomorrow, Friday, November 14, 2014, in…
Washington, D.C. – New free, secure service simplifies patent application procedures. The U.S. Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) and the State Intellectual Property Office of China (“SIPO”) recently launched a new free service that will allow the two offices to electronically exchange patent application priority…
The following improvements were made by the United States Patent and Trademark Office to the Electronic Trademark Assignment System (“eTAS”) during fiscal year 2014. These enhancements are designed to facilitate filing and recording assignments with the Assignment Recordation Branch. NEW CONVEYANCE TYPES: Added three new Conveyance Types to improve database…
The facts are alarming: the cybersecurity threat to the U.S. – and the world – is real and growing. The Economist Magazine reported early this year that one security firm estimated that cybercrime costs the world $113 billion per year and affects 378 million people, while a research institute estimated…