The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has launched a new online patent renewal service, making it simpler, quicker and cheaper for businesses and inventors to renew their patents.
To keep a patent in force, it must be renewed on the fourth anniversary of the filing date and every year after that, although the patent-holder can choose not to renew it or voluntarily cancel it at any time. More than 400,000 patents are renewed each year.
The renew a patent service, which went live on 1 July, allows an online renewal to be completed in less than four minutes, saving businesses and intellectual property (IP) professionals time and money. The online service can be found here.
Lord Younger, Minister for Intellectual Property, said: “Development of the new service began in August 2013 and through various testing phases, customers have so far renewed more than 2,500 patents to date. Feedback from businesses, private applicants and IP professionals, has helped define the service.”
People can already apply online for patents and trade marks and also renew trade marks online.
Protecting intellectual property rights is crucial to ensuring that others do not gain commercially from an individual or business’s innovative ideas and allows patent-holders to maximise the financial value of licensing arrangements and tax reliefs. For more information, please visit our website or contact BJ Chong.