Working together around the world

One of the most remarkable steps towards globalisation has been the JPO’s commencement of the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) programme. The PPH is a scheme whereby patent applicants whose applications have been determined as patentable by a patent office are entitled to request, through a simple procedure, an accelerated examination of the corresponding applications in another patent office.

Since 2006 the network of participating offices has grown. As of June 2015 the number of countries participating in the agreement has risen to 34 (Figure 1)