The tasks of a patent office include the dissemination of patent information as well as the examination of patent applications. To me, the former is just as important as the [...]
Last week in Munich, we had the pleasure of holding the Patent Library (PATLIB) seminar. This event, first held in 1990, brings together a large number of patent information centres [...]
Last week, in Paris, I put my signature to a Memorandum of Understanding between the EPO and the Institut français on the subject of French language training. Similar agreements for [...]
This week, the EPO’s Economic and Scientific Advisory Board (ESAB) published the results of its activities in 2012, investigating three topics of its own choosing: fee policy, quality and patent [...]
Last week, David Kappos took his leave from the US Patent and Trademark Office, after serving as its Director since August 2009. I would like to take this opportunity to [...]
Today saw the publication of the preliminary figures for European patent filings in 2012, which show an increase for the third year in a row. The total of almost 258 [...]
In Brussels last week, I had the pleasure of launching – with the head of the Chinese Patent Office (SIPO), Commissioner Tian Lipu – the English-Chinese language pair for our [...]
With 450 participants from 42 countries, the 2012 EPO Patent Information Conference in Hamburg was a record-breaking success. The conference, held in Hamburg from 6 to 8 November, was the [...]
