Israel Patent Office Annual Report 2016 State of Israel Ministry of Justice
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State of Israel Ministry of Justice Israel Patent Office Annual Report 2016 Israel Patent Office - State of Israel Ministry of Justice Annual Report 2016 2 State of Israel Ministry of Justice Director General 3 Israel Patent Office - State of Israel Ministry of Justice Director General Annual Report 2016 4 Preface 2016 was a year of extensive activity, marked by reduction of queues and increase of outputs in all ILPO Departments. A central streamlining measure implemented in the ILPO, experienced also by those using its services, was the transition of all ILPO Departments to full online work. A fully online services and correspondence system was launched in the Trademarks Department on June 2015, such system was also launched in the Patents Department on December 2015, in the PCT Department on July 2016, and in the Designs Department on December 2016. Each system enables the public full online work also in regard to legal proceedings before the Commissioner in each field. The ILPO has been publishing an Annual Report for six years now, in order to present its various activities. The Report reveals extensive work and advancement in the quality and standards of services provided by the ILPO to the public using its services. Each year, the scope of activities presented increases, and additional areas are exposed to public review. This year, alongside the data concerning use and performance of the various Departments, we included a more detailed data of the financial performance, and for the first time, we present the ILPO’s employment diversity data. At the end of 2016, out of approximately 200 employees, 59% are women. Professional examiners form the majority of human capital in the ILPO. Most of them are employed in the ILPO Examiners’ Promotion Track, a unique and attractive promotion track for academics in the civil service. The ILPO is committed to equal employment of all sectors in Israel. About 9% of the current employees are members of different minority groups and several positions are designated to people with disabilities. The increase in human capital led to a decrease in employees’ age, and today 38% of ILPO employees are between the ages of 31-40, while 30% are between the ages of 41-50. This diverse and talented human capital is the main factor which enables the ILPO to provide services in the availability and quality to which it is committed. It should be emphasized that the ILPO examiners benefit from an incentive wage plan, based on various parameters implemented in the ILPO work plan, and mostly on the quantity and quality of first examinations and continued examinations. We expect to finish a recruitment process of 20 additional examiners in 2017-2018, for whom the positions were recently approved. In 2016, many activities towards training and knowledge implementation took place. Know- how courses were purchased (Computers and Communication, Pharma and Optics), new cadets were trained for examination of patents, trademarks and designs. For the first time, the ILPO started a mid-level directors training program for team and field leaders, to form the ILPO management core. Following the 2015 Annual Report which, for the first time, included financial data regarding the ILPO activity, this report presents a more comprehensive data. In 2016 the surplus of income over expenses transferred to the State treasury was over 43.5 million. Most of the ILPO income originates from fees in the fields of trademarks and patents, while the international activity of the ILPO under the PCT constitutes a growing field of revenue. The patent field’s income is equally based on application and renewal fees. At the same time, in the trademarks field, about one third of the revenue originates from application fees and about two thirds - originate from renewal fees. 5 Israel Patent Office - The ILPO met the goals set it by the Committee for the Setting and Evaluation of ILPO’s Goals also in 2016. A peak number of continued examinations were performed, first examination pendency was reduced to 28.5 months (an 8% decrease, compared to 2015) while the amount of early examination requests in the various acceleration means (mostly based on PPH arrangements) was increased. With the continued training of 15 cadets which began in September 2016, and the manning of additional 20 approved positions, these outputs are expected to increase and the pendency to further reduce. In 2016 a decrease of about 7% in the number of patent applications filed in Israel was observed. On the other hand, the trend of increase in the amount of international patent Annual Report 2016 applications by Israeli applicants in the framework of the PCT continued. This led the Israeli applicants to be rated 13th in the world in terms of using this tool. The ILPO is consistently maintaining its status in this area which is important to Israeli inventors, and was ranked first in the world in terms of timeliness as a Receiving Office for international applications. In addition, we observe a continued upwards trend in outputs of ILPO patent examiners. An increase of 9% in the number of Israeli patents granted was noted simultaneously with an increase of almost 12% in designations to the International Search and Examination Authority. In September 2016, the ILPO patent examiners started using the new international classification CPC. This puts the ILPO among the first countries using this innovative and efficient classification. A team of instructors from the United States Patent and Trademark Office provided an in-depth training to all ILPO patent examiners. This is another example of how the ILPO makes sure to use the most advanced international streamlining tools as well as an example of its contribution to the global patent system. In the trademarks field, the ILPO also met its goals set by the Committee for the Setting of ILPO’s Goals. During 2016, 19,429 classes were examined. The examination time in the Trademarks Department was reduced by 15 days, although the number of examiners remained unchanged. In the course of 2017 the Trademarks database is expected to also include an option to view documents found in the trademarks files, in order to improve transparency and the service provided to the public. In 2016, a decrease of 11% was noted in the number of applications filed, and of 16% in the number of classes filed. After 2015, in which the number of applications and classes peaked, the figures returned to those of previous years. Israel designation rate maintained in its 18th place in international trademarks applications under the Madrid Protocol. Similarly, in 2016 Israel retained its 30 place as an office of origin in international registration under the Madrid Protocol. In the Designs Department, the examination time was significantly reduced to 3.5 months, with average pendency for first examination also reduced to 3.5 months. This, while in 2016 the number of applications filed was the highest in the past 10 years. This rise may be attributed to the growing interest in this important field, given the promotion of the new Designs Law, expected to be enacted at the Knesset (the Israeli Parliament) in 2017. This law will lead to many revisions in the ILPO’s work in this field, as it is expected to lead Israel to join the Hague Agreement for the International Registration of Industrial Designs in the countries party to the Agreement. A round table open to the public was held in 2016 in the field of Designs. Following this event, important changes were made in the Department’s work guidelines, while making adjustments to global trends in the field concerning the reproductions of designs. 6 In the framework of the 2017 work plan, the investment in the online work systems and their improvement will continue. A central system to be launched in 2017 is a new operational system in the Patents Department that will replace the current system, which has been in use for the past 13 years. The ILPO will also prepare for exercising the new Designs Law and joining the Hague Agreement, including all operative implications of such move. New work guidelines will be prepared in the Patents Department, updated in accordance with the plan which was published by the Department at the beginning of 2017, following a process of consultation with the public. The ILPO is a pilot unit for the Governmental Regulation Impact Assessment Project, according to a government resolution regarding this issue. In 2016, a report was completed after receiving comments from the public, and an improvement plan was prepared. For example, given the report’s findings, only one update of the work guidelines will be published in all Departments in 2017. In 2016 a program for reducing the amount of Commissioner Circulars and Notices was launched. After the release for public review and holding a round table open for the public, Commissioner Circular 033/2016 and Commissioner Circular Update 026/2014 in the field of trademarks were published. These circulars unified many subjects, and 9 old circulars and notices were cancelled. In the field of patents, Circulars 34/2016 and 35/2016 were published on December 2016 for public review. A round table in their respect took place in the first half of 2017, and they are expected to cancel 21 circulars and 2 notices. The ILPO holds leading international status, derived from the increased usages of Israeli applicants in the international tools the ILPO makes available to them. The ILPO has widespread connections with leading patent offices around the world. In 2016,