KIPO First Foreign Office to Join CPC
26 July 2013
The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) have announced the launch of a new pilot programme wherein KIPO will classify some of its patent documents using the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system, a new classification system jointly managed by the USPTO and the European Patent Office (EPO). KIPO is the first foreign patent office engaging with the USPTO and EPO in this new system, which debuted on January 1, 2013.
KIPO will apply the CPC classification to patent documents in particular technologies, namely, technologies for which filings have been particularly active at KIPO. KIPO will collaborate with the USPTO to identify such technologies.
“The USPTO looks forward to working with KIPO as it begins the process of classifying documents into the CPC,” said Teresa Rea, acting undersecretary of Commerce for intellectual property and acting director of the USPTO. “This pilot programme highlights the excellent bilateral relationship and spirit of cooperation between the USPTO and KIPO, which allows our offices to achieve significant benefits for the innovation community.”
“KIPO expects that the pilot project will help improve the quality of examination at both offices by enabling examiners to retrieve Korean patent documents more effectively. Furthermore, it will lay the foundation for deepening bilateral patent cooperation between KIPO and the USPTO,” said Young-min Kim, KIPO Commissioner.
The USPTO and EPO have cooperated since October 2010 to create a globally-compatible classification system used by both offices in various examination-related processes in order to increase efficiency by reducing unnecessary repetitive procedures.
