Www.wipo.int/pct/en FICPI/AIPLA Colloquium, April 2003 PCT Today: History, Status and Projected Growth FICPI/AIPLA Colloquium on Reform of the Patent Cooperation

www.wipo.int/pct/en FICPI/AIPLA Colloquium, April 2003

PCT Today:History, Status and Projected Growth

FICPI/AIPLA Colloquium on Reform of the Patent Cooperation Treaty

Where We Are and Where We Are Going

Nice, April 8, 2003


Four Aspects to Look at:

Historical overview

Current status

Future projections

Some new - and not so new - directions


1978

June 1, 1978: the filing of the first PCT applications

• During that first year:459 applications received 19 applications published

10 staff members 18 Contracting States:

Brazil MadagascarCameroon MalawiCentral African Republic SenegalChad Soviet Union Congo SwedenFrance SwitzerlandGabon TogoGerman (Federal Republic of) United Kingdom Luxembourg United States of America


2002

• 114,048 PCT applications received

• 144,570 publications and republications

• 518 staff members

• 118 Contracting States

Contracting States(118 on 1 January 2003)

AlbaniaAlgeriaAntigua and BarbudaArmeniaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBosnia and HerzegovinaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoCameroonCanadaCentral African Republic

ChadChina Colombia CongoCosta RicaCôte d'IvoireCroatiaCubaCyprusCzech RepublicDemocratic People's Republic of KoreaDenmarkDominicaEcuadorEquatorial Guinea EstoniaFinlandFrance,

GabonGambiaGeorgia GermanyGhana GreeceGrenadaGuineaGuinea‑BissauHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIreland IsraelItalyJapanKazakhstanKenyaKyrgyzstan

LatviaLesotho LiberiaLiechtenstein LithuaniaLuxembourgMadagascarMalawiMaliMauritaniaMexicoMonacoMongoliaMoroccoMozambiqueNetherlandsNew ZealandNicaragua (6 March ‘03)NigerNorwayOman

Philippines PolandPortugalRepublic of Korea Republic of MoldovaRomaniaRussian FederationSaint LuciaSaint Vincent and the Grenadines SenegalSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovakiaSloveniaSouth AfricaSpainSri LankaSudanSwaziland

SwedenSwitzerlandTajikistan The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia TogoTrinidad and Tobago TunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited Republic of TanzaniaUnited States of AmericaUzbekistanViet NamYugoslaviaZambiaZimbabwe


Legal Texts

Since 1970 the PCT has gone through:

Treaty: 4 versions

Regulations: 24 versions

Ongoing revision of:Administrative Instructions and about 200 PCT Forms

Guidelines for receiving Offices, for PCT Search and Examination

Bilateral Agreements with 11 national or regional Offices


0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

1978

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

114,048 international applications received in 2002

Growth in PCT Filings

Total: 797,768


PCT Filing by Five-year Periods(1978 - 2002)

2.0% 4.3%11.8%

25.5%56.4%

1978/1982

1983/1987

1988/1992

1993/1997

1998/2002

449,973

Total: 797,768


Top 20 PCT Filers

1. PHILIPS ELECTRONICS (NL)

2. SIEMENS (DE)

3. BOSCH (DE)

4. ERICSSON (SE)

5. MATSUSHITA ELECTRONIC

INDUSTRIAL (JP)

6. SONY (JP)

7. NOKIA (FI)

8. 3M (US)

9. BAYER (DE)

10. PROCTER & GAMBLE (US)

11. BASF (DE)

12. INFINEON (DE)

13. MITSUBISHI (JP)

14. HONEYWELL (US)

15. INTEL (US)

16. MOTOROLA (US)

17. IBM (US)

18. QUALCOMM(US)

19. UNIV. OF CALIFORNIA (US)

20. SUN MICROSYSTEMS (US)


Top 10 PCT Filers From Developing Countries

1. COUNCIL OF SCIENTIFC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH (IN)

2. SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO. LTD. (KR)

3. BIOWINDOW GENE DEVELOPMENT INC. (CN)

4. LG ELECTONICS ING. (KR)

5. HUAEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD. (CN)

6. RANBAXY LABORATORIES LIMITED (IN)

7. LG CHEM LTD. (KR)

8. SAE MAGNETICS (H.K.) LTD. (CN)

9. NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE (SG)

10. PHILIPS ELECTRONICS SINGAPORE PTE LTD. (SG)


2300 1950 1570 1290 1150 1150

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500

1000

1500

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1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003

PCT FeesBasic & maximum designation fees

(including PCT-EASY reduction of CHF 200 since 1999)


2211 2130 1934 1760 1630

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

Average Fee Per Application

(15%) (4%) (9%) (9%) (7%) Percentage decrease


0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000

160000

180000

200000

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Others

EPO

Japan

United States

Projected PCT Applications

(7%) (10%) (10%) (9%) (6%) (6%) (6%) Percentage increase


Combine: Basic fee 650 Designation fees 700 Handling fee 233 Total 1,583

Reduce as much as economically reasonable

Result: current proposal for flat international fee= 1,530

Reduction of 3.3%

Projected New Fee Structure Current Proposal For a Flat International Fee


Conceptually:Flat fee= Basic fee unchanged

Handling fee unchanged4.76 designations

Average designations:

US: 4.99JP: 4.33EP: 4.82Other: 4.94

-------Total: 4.85

Impact of New Fee Structure


In comparison with handling fee:• previously discretionary (only payable with Ch.II

demand)• now moved forward and mandatory

In general:Minor impact: US and EPMore significant impact: JP

Impact of New Fee Structure


PCT Electronic Filing(PCT-SAFE)

Background: PCT-EASY software– approx. 40% of all PCT applications filed– 10,000 registered users– fee reduction available for use

PCT electronic filing project in 2001 “PCT-SAFE” (Secure Applications Filed Electronically) based on PCT-EASY and EPOline

– Promulgation of the PCT Administrative Instructions to enable PCT e-filing (Dec. 2001) – Agreed standards for the electronic filing and processing of PCT applications (Dec. 2001)– Pilot began Nov. 2002– E-filing at RO/IB before end 2003


Strategic Management and Thinking

• Take the pulse of the PCT on a regular basis• Identify means to anticipate problems• Imagine solutions• Define best practices, methodologies• Identify trends and patterns and analyze them


External Legal Relations

• Establish enhanced channels of communication and exchanges with Offices

• Provide legal advice to Contracting States and potential Contracting States

• Increase outreach to PCT users, user groups and potential users


Legal Services

• Explore innovative ways to continue to provide quality information to PCT users

• Expand the information resources on the PCT website• Provide legal advice on specific PCT cases• Develop new PCT training tools and methods• Continue to improve the quality and usability of PCT

publications• Focus on implementation of PCT Reform


Operations

• Implement a new workflow structure• Collaborate on the development and deployment of an office

automation system (IMPACT) and PCT-SAFE electronic filing

• Prepare for the move to a new building• Support the continued growth of the receiving Office of the

International Bureau


Thank you

Documents

Www.wipo.int/pct/en FICPI/AIPLA Colloquium, April 2003 PCT Today: History, Status and Projected Growth FICPI/AIPLA Colloquium on Reform of the Patent Cooperation