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What's New? > News > Focus User Group Update
Focus User Group Update
Interactive e-services
To align user requirements of the filers regarding the interactive e-services, we have conducted visits, workshops and working group meeting with practitioners from June to August, 2005. Here are the updates:
File logic
- One electronic record for one Registry
For filing interactive requests for trademarks, patents and designs, one electronic record is designed for one Registry only. Please see attached drafts (T5, T8, P9/P10, P18, D12) for reference.
- Filing requests for change of applicants'/owners' names
The logic (attached) for validating the applicants’/owners names’ against that in the e-register treats the equivalent terms of the names as the same:
The above list could be expanded to include more equivalent terms, for example, “GMBH” and “Gesellschaft mit Beschrankter Haftung”, “KK” and “Kabushiki Kaisha”.
| Limited |
Ltd. |
Ltd., |
Ltd |
| Company |
Company, |
Co. |
Co., |
The above list could be expanded to include more equivalent terms, for example, “GMBH” and “Gesellschaft mit Beschrankter Haftung”, “KK” and “Kabushiki Kaisha”.
- Upload and submission as one step
Uploading and submission are two separate steps in the existing e-filing interface and PDF is generated before submission of the requests.
For interactive services, the two steps are merged into one and PDF is generated after submission of the requests.
- Address format
For each address, a multi-line box of 5 lines would be used and there is a separate line for country.
System
- Real time transactions
Interactive requests would be approved immediately if all validations and data are matched. After an interactive request is approved, the clock could not be turned back to rollback the approval to allow the registries to act on any unapproved paper-filed request of the same nature (such as change of name of the registered owner) for the same application or registration. If there are outstanding related process such as opposition proceedings, interactive requests would be directed to slip road for processing by the registries. Please see attached the workflow and validation rules.
Upon approval of the interactive requests, the updated records would be reflected in the online search two days after the approval.
- Receipt as confirmation of approval
Interactive e-services enable real time processing. The interactive requests would be approved instantly if all validations and data are matched. Upon completion of real time transactions, the receipt as confirmation of approval would be issued instantly.
Please see attached the sample receipt.
- Standardization: names and addresses of applicants/registered owners stored and displayed “as is”
Our trademark computer systems accept a free-text input of name and address which can be filed in upper or lower case. The name and address of applicants will be stored and displayed in the computer systems in accordance with what has been given in the electronic records. As we adopt font “Ming (for ISO10646) ExtB” which also supports Japanese characters, the trademark computer system can store and display name and address in Japanese characters. However, the language requirements under the Trade Marks Ordinance (Cap. 559) and Rules (Cap. 559A) remain unchanged.
By using Ming(for ISO10646)ExtB under Windows XP platform, it can support the following characters:
- English characters
- Traditional Chinese characters
- Simplified Chinese characters
- HKSCS characters
- Japanese characters
- Some Latin characters, as follows:
Please see attached the sample certificate showing the effect of displaying “as is”.
Procedures
- Discontinue publication of changes of name, address, agent’s address, address for service and registration of transactions, instruments or events affecting rights in or under applications for patents and designs in the Hong Kong Intellectual Property Journal
With the availability of online search for patents and designs, publication of such changes recorded in the register was not as useful as it was previously. The registries would discontinue publication.
- Concluding cases – minimize the chance of interactive requests being directed to slip road processing
The registry would write to filers to conclude outstanding post-registration cases for a reply within two months, failing which the post-registration request would be treated as abandoned.
- No PO Box address or care-of address for address for service or agent’s address
The statutory requirement is that the address must be a residential or business address in Hong Kong. Same as the paper-filed cases, if the requirement is not satisfied, the registries would send a notice to the applicant or owner asking him to file an address for service in Hong Kong within two months after the date of the notice.
- Data cleansing scheme for applicants’/owners’ names
A set of clean data of applicants’/owners’ names facilitates the filing of interactive requests. We would assist you to cleanse your clients’ data by sending excel files containing the following information:
- The applicants’/owners’ names in all our live records (registered and pending)
- The trademark numbers of the records
- The address for service of the records
Please contact us to work out the details.
Items 5, 7, 8, 9 and 10 have had the benefit of the Working Group Meeting, held on 24 August, 2005 between IPD / IP bodies representatives.
For the purpose of the System Analysis & Designs Report (SA & D Report), comments received in September 2005 will be considered, e-mail address businesscentre .
Other issues
Online search
- Live and dead records
Having aligned users on the display of “live” and “dead” trademark records in the online search (http://ipsearch.ipd.gov.hk/), we will launch implementing the programming change which will enable display of “live” (“現存的記錄”) and “dead” ( “已清除的記錄”) trademark records separately in search results.
- Display the status of inter-partes proceedings in the e-register
In view of the low volume of registrations which are under revocation, declaration of invalidity, rectification and variation, programming changes would be considered after launch of e-interactive services.
e-Filing
- Enable e-filers to delete “not yet paid” entries from the e-submission screen
The deletion function would result in an incomplete record for those not yet paid applications to disappear from electronic payment. In any event, entries in the e-submission screen are purged after 12 months.
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