FITUG e.V.
Förderverein Informationstechnik und Gesellschaft
FITUG e.V.Förderverein Informationstechnik und Gesellschaft |
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http://www.nylj.com/stories/00/03/032300a5.htm
March 27, 2000
Can Feds Keep Up With E-Patents?
New York Law Journal
Thursday, March 23, 2000
THE GROWING number of patent applications being filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by e-commerce companies is prompting some technology executives to question whether the PTO has the resources and staff to keep up.
And, this year the agency will begin to implement the American Inventors Protection Act of 1999 (AIPA), which is expected to have a dramatic impact on patent protection, enforcement and exploitation. The new law also paves the way for the agency to restructure itself to function more like a business organization.
Given the sweeping changes and challenges facing the PTO today, New York Law Journal reporter Lisa I. Fried met recently with PTO chief Q. Todd Dickinson, the Assistant Secretary of Commerce and commissioner of patents and trademarks, to discuss these issues. [The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.]
Q: Historically, many in the patent bar assumed business methods were not patentable. In 1998, that quickly changed, when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled inState Street Bank v. Signature Financial Group, 149 F3d 1368, that business methods were patentable. Since then, the PTO has been inundated with applications for business method patents, many from technology companies. How many computer-related business method patents were filed and granted last year?
A: Between October 1998 and September 1999, 2,600 applications for computer-related business methods were filed. During that same time period, 583 of these patents were issued.
Q: In the examination process, examiners search through prior art to determine if the claimed invention is new, useful and non-obvious. Some critics say your office lacks the resources to examine business method and software patents. How much prior art exists on these claims, and do your examiners have access to it?
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