Patent Reform Steers Toward Increased Fees
A recent post of mine discussed the financial woes of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO), which are connected with the decrease in applications being filed. A solution may be on the horizon. However, it does not appear to be favorable to future inventors. A letter from the Secretary of Commerce, Gary Locke, urges the Obama Administration to grant the PTO the ability to temporarily raise fees.
The reasoning behind such a "limited interim fee adjustment" is that it is the option with the least adverse effect. Other alternatives include cutting the budget by eliminating PTO services or using Federal tax dollars to subsidize operations. The proposal considers increasing standard application fees, maintenance fees, and time extension fees by roughly fifteen percent.
In contemplation of a possible fee increase, now is the time to patent your invention. Contact a competent patent attorney to arrange a consultation and determine the best course of action.
