European Patent Office Newsletter epoline® Newsletter Number 2 As a user of EASY, EPA/EPA/OEB Form, PatentIn or the Register of European Patents, you will automatically receive our epoline® Newsletter. If you would prefer to be removed from our list, please see the instructions at the end of this message. ______________________________________________________________________________________ communication for the various transactions available. ® The internal systems will be connected together so epoline that they act as a single point of contact. ® Further details of the project and its progress will be What is epoline ? provided in future issues of the newsletter. In recent years, the EPO has invested in the Please also visit the epoline® web site for further automation of various areas of the Patent Granting background.: http://www.epoline.org procedure in order to improve the efficiency of these areas (e.g. CAESAR for Search Report How to contact the epoline® Help preparation and PHOENIX for the elimination of Desk paper dossiers). These disparate developments have produced operational systems but their Please contact us as follows: effectiveness has remained internal to the EPO. All e-mail: [email protected] interactions with the “outside” world have continued to involve the receipt and production of Fax: + 31 70 340 4600 paper documents so that, from the perspective of Tel.: + 31 70 340 4500 Mail: the EPO’s clients, there are no tangible advantages ® and no participation in the electronic processes. epoline Help Desk European Patent Office However, the extraordinary advances in Internet Patentlaan 2 and related technologies now make it possible for NL - 2288 EE RIJSWIJK (Z-H) even the smallest enterprises to conduct business The Netherlands transactions completely electronically with all the attendant benefits of ease of use, security, instant ® acknowledgement and, of course, lower costs. It is epoline HEARING REPORT important that the EPO offer to its clients similar - Management Summary – facilities when the transactions concerned are things like patent filing, communications, file inspection etc. Since both parties already have Introduction computer infrastructures, they can both benefit from these facilities. Printing, mailing, storage, The epoline project aims to improve both the scanning etc. are no longer required and any data efficiency of the EPO and its service to the need only be entered once, at the source. intellectual property community by providing a secure and integrated environment for electronic On the EPO side, this means that the various communication between the EPO and applicants, electronic systems that support the Patent Granting their representatives and the national patent offices of procedure must be made to cooperate and that a the EPC contracting states. A hearing was organised single point of contact be provided through which by the European Patent Office in order to give a all external interactions can take place. The project better idea of the implications of epoline and how it which has been created to achieve this has been fits into the broader setting of current electronic ® dubbed “epoline ”. commerce activities worldwide. The hearing was held The approach that has been adopted by epoline® is at the EPO in Munich. to create an environment that offers to the external user a single interface and a single mode of Issue Number 2 09/27/99 1 European Patent Office Newsletter World-wide E-commerce activities The requirement to establish an appropriate legal framework at the national level and also at the level The presentations during the morning panel session of the EPC with its implementing rules. clearly demonstrated that many E-commerce and E- business initiatives are already implemented or The economical impact will play a significant role in underway and that the EPO is certainly not a the speed of the implementation of such a project. pioneer in this area. What are the benefits? Specific aspects that were addressed: The need to have a system which is clear and simple to use, which is user-friendly and which is properly The volume of E-business is growing very rapidly. supported by a helpdesk. Examples include: E-commerce over the Internet ($ 8 billion in 1998, while over the next four years this is expected to grow to $130 billion), electronic Conclusions ticketing by airlines ($750 million) and the broker’s The hearing revealed that the European Patent Office business ($200 billion). Specific examples include is not a pioneer in the development of its E- Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Swiss commerce implementation epoline . Therefore Federal Railway, Charles Schwab brokers, Harvard lessons could be learned from projects already University and Whirlpool. implemented. Furthermore, it is essential that the The technical developments to provide for a secure Patent Office develops epoline in close and efficient environment for E-commerce are collaboration with its customers. The EPO welcomed developing rapidly, however it is equally important the various invitations from customers to visit their that trust in this new environment is built up. premises in order to gain a better understanding of the different workflows within these companies. These E-commerce will have a strong economical impact visits will be made in the coming months as part of on day-to-day business as was shown in a business case of American Express. general marketing plan which is currently being established at the EPO. In the financial world, the number of electronic transactions is growing rapidly (see above). Various standards for electronic payments are currently under development and an example was given of EASY the opportunities offered by electronic payment. E-commerce will not only affect business that is What is EASY ? done worldwide, but in our daily life we will notice similar changes. As an example, all Finnish citizens EASY stands for Electronic Application SYstem, a will be provided before the end of the year with a software enabling applicants to prepare and file smart-card, which will replace current paper patent applications electronically. identity means. What's new in EASY ? Implications of epoline for the Intellectual Property community EASY Version 2.85 release The introduction of epoline was very well received The EP-version 2.85 of EASY will be available for within the Intellectual Property community. download from our web site from early October: However, the project can only be successful if http://www.european-patent-office.org/index.htm during the development the requirements of both the Patent Offices and the customers are taken into Please note that this version is only intended for those account. clients using EP-EASY for filing. A general release including EP-, PCT-, FR- and FI-EASY will be Specific aspects that were highlighted: available for download and on CD-Rom soon after The need for trust. This is not necessarily the that. easiest thing to achieve, but it is absolutely To order the software on CD-ROM contact the essential. epoline® Help Desk via our web site, by telefax or by The need to understand clearly the different e-mail at [email protected] requirements both on the side of the Patent Offices Please note: and on the side of the customers. The following section provides information specific to the EP version of EASY. For further questions, Issue Number 2 09/27/99 2 European Patent Office Newsletter please do not hesitate to contact us at Filing and Registering [email protected] The current version of EP-EASY may be used by all For information on the PCT version of EASY and applicants and representatives for the preparation and / or to order the PCT-EASY software, please filing of European Patent applications. Please take contact the PCT-EASY Help Desk at note of the special provisions pertaining to the filing [email protected] of EASY applications: http://www.european-patent- office.org/filingsoft/index.htm. Once you have What's changed in EASY? installed EASY, you are kindly requested to return to the relevant EASY Help Desk the registration form EASY version 2.85 comprises a number of minor that is generated by EASY. The installation time bug changes, plus the following amendments in stamp generated when you install can be important in accordance with procedural changes: gaining the correct assistance from help desk. Please • Designated states. The software has been note however that registering is not a prerequisite for amended to accommodate the rule change (Art. filing. 2, No. 3 Rfees). EPO Fax number for filing EASY • The priority page carries a check box which, applications when clicked, displays the following text: “It is hereby declared that the application is a Please note the following fax number for use when complete translation of the previous filing EASY applications: application”. This statement is also printed on the 1001E Form 070 – 340 3016 • This version of the EASY software is available Your email address as a 32-bit program, running under Windows 95 , Windows 98 and Windows NT only. May we request those of you who received this copy of the epoline newsletter by mail to inform us at Coming Soon in EASY [email protected] of your email address, so that future issues can be made available to you electronically? EASY database connectivity Frequently-asked questions In response to widespread user request, the EASY Q1. What does the EASY software cost? external database functionality is currently being A1. EASY is free of charge. developed. Q2. Can we file EASY applications without first This functionality will allow you to export and having returned our EASY registration form? import data from your own existing Patent A2. Yes. The form is for your registration as an Management System into EASY, enabling you to EASY user and to enable us here in the EASY use the existing Client/Server functionality.