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3 April 2018Patents

UKIPO agrees PPH with Brazil

The UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has signed a patent prosecution highway (PPH) agreement with the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (INPI).

The PPH allows applicants who have been successful in obtaining a patent at one office to request accelerated processing of a corresponding application at the other, saving time and cost.

On Wednesday, March 28, the offices signed the PPH during the tenth UK-Brazil Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) in London.

Andy Bartlett, IPO divisional director, and Mauro Maia, executive director of INPI signed the agreement.

This PPH builds on work initiated under the UK-Brazil memorandum of understanding on IP in December 2016.

Bartlett said: “This agreement has obvious practical value to innovators seeking international patent protection. It is also symbolic of a more open and strategic approach by the Brazilian government on IP.”

Last week, the IPO and Oxentia, Oxford University’s global innovation consultancy, launched a toolkit in Brazil which aims to help academia and industry to carry out research projects together.

In June 2016, the IPO and China’s State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) announced plans to extend their PPH programme.

Then, in November last year, WIPR reported that SIPO had agreed a PPH with Brazil, while signing a bilateral work plan for 2018 with the IPO.

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