News

BPTO and CAS establish technical cooperation agreement to strengthen fight against patent backlog

10/06/2020

According to a publication in the Official Gazette this Wednesday (06/10/2020), BPTO and CAS, a non-profit division of the American Chemical Society, signed a technical cooperation agreement to expedite the examination of patents. The agreement establishes BPTO’s participation in a CAS Search Report pilot, with the aim of improving the patent workflow at the Institute.

The technology, which will be tested and optimized, is able to assess similarities with the state of the art from parameters of a patent application important for the examiner’s analysis. In addition, the system combines machine learning and data selected by humans, which improves the results offered.

News from: BPTO

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Dispute over the use of iPhone trademark in Brazil reaches the Federal Supreme Court (STF)

25/05/2020

The episode for the rights of exclusive use over the iPhone trademark in Brazil has begun a new chapter this week. After losing in different courts to Apple, IGB Eletrônica, formerly Gradiente, took the case to be tried by the Federal Supreme Court (STF).

Both companies have been fighting in the courts since the beginning of the decade. The Brazilian company registered the term iPhone (with a capital I) in 2000 at the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO). It took the agency eight years to grant the registration. At that time, Apple had launched its own iPhone in 2007.

In 2012, Gradiente then launched a line of smartphones with its trademark. Equipped with the Android operating system, the devices have nothing to do with Apple’s phone. In 2014, the pre-sale of the iPhone C-600 model even made the IGB’s shares rise. Sales, however, sank.

IGB’s new action against Apple refers to an Extraordinary Appeal (ARE 1266095), which is the impugnation before the Federal Supreme Court against a judicial decision issued by a State or Federal court. In this case, the Superior Court of Justice (STJ).

In 2018, Gradiente lost the battle in the STJ court to Apple. In the decision, it was determined that both companies could use the term.

The Judge-Rapporteur, Minister Luís Felipe Salomão, argued at the time that “the use of the ‘iPhone’ trademark by Apple does not show any circumstance that implies, even potentially, parasitic exploitation, diversion of customers or dilution of the trademark, with the induction of consumers in mistake”.

The minister also made it clear that “such exegesis does not prejudice the IGB, which, having previously registered the expression ‘G GRADIENTE IPHONE’, may continue to use it, but ruling out only the exclusivity of using the expression ‘iPhone’ in isolation ”.

Filed on April 24, 2020, the appeal cites IGB Eletrônica as part of the process, as an appellant; Apple, as a defendant; in addition to the BPTO. There is no prediction as to when the appeal will be tried at the Supreme Court.

News from: Exame

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IBM releases free use of patents to fight coronavirus

06/05/2020

Owner of one of the largest patent holdings on the planet, IBM announced the release of its entire portfolio for free use in the development of technologies that help in the diagnosis, prevention, containment, or treatment of the new coronavirus. The measure includes ownership records in fields such as artificial intelligence, where the company is one of the global leaders with Watson, and even in the area of ​​biological viruses.

According to the company, the commitment encompasses more than 80 thousand patents and applications already registered, in addition to any new application submitted until the end of 2023. Researchers, companies and institutions interested in reviewing the available patents can search the public databases of The United States Patent and Trademark Office.

“To commit to not claiming patents from entities that use them in the fight against coronavirus, IBM is joining the Open Covid Pledge, which invites organizations to make their intellectual property available for free to use to combat the pandemic and to minimize the impact of disease”, Mark Ringes, legal counsel for IBM, said in a statement.

Among the patents made available free by IBM are those for artificial intelligence, including the technologies behind IBM Watson. The system became known worldwide at the beginning of the decade, after beating human competitors on an American question-and-answer TV show. Today, Watson offers several cloud services.

But in addition to the technology field, the company has a patent that describes antiviral agents, including molecules with activity against a broad spectrum of viruses, such as dengue, H1N1 and coronavirus. Another patent describes a touchscreen that uses ultraviolet light for disinfection. There are also algorithms that predict the duration and scope of events, including epidemics.

News from: O Globo

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BPTO will accelerate examination of patents related to combating Covid-19

09/04/2020

With a focus on stimulating the production and licensing of new technologies, BPTO will prioritize examining patent applications for innovations that can be used to combat the new coronavirus pandemic. The measure was made official through Ordinance No. 149/2020, published on April 7.

The prioritization is valid until 06/30/2021, as determined by Ordinance No. 149/2020.

The granting of a patent by BPTO attests that its object is new and guarantees the holder the exclusivity for use and licensing in Brazil (the patent has national validity). Therefore, with a patent granted, inventors gain more security to start production or license to a partner who can produce it.

Among the modalities of priority patent application, one of them is focused on health technologies, especially those strategic for the Unified Health System (SUS). Now, technologies related to combating the new coronavirus become part of this accelerated examination.

Technologies Observatory

Still in the context of the pandemic, INPI created, in March, the Observatory of Technologies Related to Covid-19. The objective is to disseminate technologies that can contribute to coping with the situation, including vaccines, medications, diagnostic tests, masks, and health equipment. Initiatives on funding and incentives for research in this area are also being disseminated.

Among the recent updates, the Observatory presents a study on patents filed with BPTO regarding diagnostic methods for Covid-19 and other respiratory viruses.

In this way, the relevant information is contributed to public agents and members of the National Innovation System who are directly linked to fighting the disease. For more information, visit the Observatory.

 

News from: BPTO

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MSF calls for patents not to be created on treatments and vaccines against the new coronavirus

01/04/2020

The international humanitarian organization Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) this weekend called for no patents to be granted and no speculation about drugs, tests or vaccines developed to combat the Covid-19 pandemic caused by the new coronavirus. They also asked governments to prepare to suspend and replace patents and take other measures, such as price controls, to ensure availability, reduce prices and save more lives.

Canada, Chile, Ecuador and Germany have already taken steps to facilitate patent replacement by granting “compulsory licenses” for medicines, vaccines and other medical tools to Covid-19. Likewise, the Israeli government granted a compulsory license for patents on a drug they were investigating for use against the disease.

After intense criticism from civil society groups and MSF, the pharmaceutical corporation Gilead has just renounced a special designation from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that would allow prolonged monopoly control over 20 years of patents applied for in more than 70 countries for its potential candidate for Covid-19 treatment, remdesivir. Preliminary results from clinical trials using remdesivir to treat Covid-19 are expected in April. However, Gilead has not yet committed to not applying its patents globally.

MSF is deeply concerned about access to future drugs, tests and vaccines against the new coronavirus in places where MSF works and in other countries affected by this pandemic. The organization asks governments to prepare to suspend or replace Covid-19’s medical tool patents by issuing mandatory licenses. Removing patents and other barriers is critical to helping ensure that there are enough suppliers selling at prices everyone can afford.

American diagnostic test maker Cepheid offers another example of pandemic profit. The company has just received the US FDA Emergency Use Authorization for a rapid Covid-19 test (Xpert Xpress SARS-CoV-2) that provides results in just 45 minutes, using existing test machines that have been routinely used for tuberculosis, HIV and other diseases.

Cepheid has just announced that it will charge $ 19.80 per test in developing countries, including the poorest countries in the world, where people live on less than $ 2 a day. Research from MSF and other institutions on Cepheid’s tuberculosis test – which uses a similar tuberculosis test cartridge, for which the corporation charges $ 10 in developing countries – shows that the cost of products, including manufacturing, overhead and other expenses for each cartridge is $ 3, so each test can be sold at a profit for half the price: $ 5.

MSF warned that high prices and monopolies will result in the rationing of medicines, tests and vaccines, which will result in the prolongation of this pandemic.

News from: Paranashop

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BPTO provides software registration manual in English and Spanish

17/10/2019

BPTO has made available the Computer Program User Manual in Portuguese, English and Spanish versions. This is the first service of the Institute to have a trilingual manual.

With the manuals, BPTO intends to facilitate access to the internationally-registered software registration service in Brazil, valid in all member countries of the Berne Convention.

Access the manuals

E-Software system

Since 2017, the computer program registration process has been done completely online and with automated decisions through the e-Software system. After the implementation of the system, the certificate of registration became available on the BPTO Portal within 7 (seven) business days.
In recognition of this action, e-Software is one of the three finalists of the HDI ” Citizen IT Initiative 2019 ” award. The final contest will be on October 17th during EXPOGOV 2019.

News from: BPTO

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Brazil and Denmark sign three agreements to stimulate innovation

10/10/2019

Promote partnerships between Brazilians and Danes for innovation activities, including the generation and commercialization of Industrial Property assets, such as patents. This is the main objective of the three agreements signed on Monday, October 7, in Copenhagen (Denmark), by the president of the Brazilian Patent Office (BPTO), Claudio Furtado, with the director-general of the Danish Patent Office (DKPTO), Sune Stampe Sorensen, and with Danish Ambassador to Brazil, Nicolai Prytz.
According to the special secretary of Productivity, Employment and Competitiveness (SEPEC) of the Ministry of Economy, Carlos Da Costa, through the partnership with Denmark, Brazil gives a decisive impulse to expand innovation and, therefore, the competitiveness of Brazilian companies.
BPTO president, Cláudio Furtado, stressed the importance of the agreements to improve the innovation system in Brazil, as well as their positive effects on the economy. “We started a new model to improve the business environment in the country, in addition to promoting the creation and commercialization of Brazilian Intellectual Property in the world market,” he said.
The ceremony was also attended by the Brazilian ambassador in Denmark, Carlos Antonio da Rocha Paranhos. According to him, Brazil can be proud to have Denmark, one of the world leaders in innovation and intellectual property, as the first partner in a broad patent cooperation project.

New partnerships

The first agreement will encourage cooperation between companies from both countries in research, development, and innovation (RD&I). The mapping of potential participants is already being done in many regions of Brazil. One result of this work will be the creation of new patents and other Industrial Property assets in common, that is, involving two or more partners.
The second agreement will speed up the analysis of Brazilian patents in Denmark and vice versa so that these assets can be used effectively in both markets. This will be done through a new Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) type agreement, broader than the current one. In this PPH model, the result of patent examination done in one country can be leveraged in the other to speed up the process.
Finally, the third agreement involves the next stage of an Industrial Property asset: commercialization. It refers to the IP Marketplace, an online offering and trading platform for these assets, which was developed in Denmark and now has Brazilian adhesion. There are 6,000 registered trademark, patent and industrial design owners from 157 countries.
 
News from: BPTO

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The University of Brasilia creates biofertilizer that increases productivity

12/08/2019

The Chemistry Institute of the University of Brasilia (UnB), in partnership with Embrapa, has developed a nanotechnology capable of increasing plant productivity, increasing the nutritional value of food, reducing the use of pesticides and making crops less vulnerable to drought and plagues.
Krill A32, a luminescent carbon-based biofertilizer, is under patent application at the Brazilian Patent Office (BPTO).
The name Krill refers to small crustaceans (1 to 2 cm) that serve as food for various marine species, including whales, and are critical for maintaining ecosystems in the oceans. Nanotechnology handles atoms and molecules sized at 1 and 1000 nanometers, verifiable only in special equipment.
As it enables fast plant growth, nano-compost can be used to recover degraded areas, forest management for wood and pulp production, and intensification of agricultural activity – without the need to increase planted areas and shrink forests.
Nano-compound, which is non-toxic, can be applied to plant roots and leaves. The most advanced tests are with foliage. The application with lettuce, cotton, garlic, rice, cocoa, corn, soybean, and tomato was studied. As the substance is luminescent, its absorption in foods can be traced.

News from: Agência Brasil
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BPTO will have 100% digital services

02/08/2019

BPTO launched on Wednesday (July 31, 2019) the IP Digital Plan, which aims to expand and facilitate the provision of services over the Internet. The initiative is the result of the partnership with the Special Secretariat of Productivity, Employment and Competitiveness and the Digital Government Secretariat of the Ministry of Economy, as well as the Special Secretariat of State Modernization.
The plan foresees 24 actions, which will facilitate citizen service by deploying new information and communication technology resources. Among the measures is the deployment of e-Chip, an online system for ordering integrated circuit topographies. This will make BPTO’s services 100% digital.
A task force instituted by BPTO works to deploy new digital products. Among them, the following stand out:

  • Tool for the user to schedule, via the internet, attendance or distance attendance;
  • Evaluation system after the use of each service, via web and SMS;
  • Chatbot, a program that uses artificial intelligence to simulate conversations and provide information to the user;
  • New INPI portal, designed from user behavior;
  • Application of press releases and news;
  • Single Sign-On (Br Access), by adhering to the Digital Government Secretariat tool, through which it is possible to use digital public services with a single user registration;
  • Digital means of payment, such as credit and debit card, from solution under development by the Digital Government Secretariat.

With the IP Digital Plan, BPTO plans to adopt a new model of interaction with society, which values greater access to information, open data and the provision of a secure virtual environment for service provision.
The Plan also converges with the tools of the federal government’s Digital Citizenship Platform, which aims to expand and simplify Brazilian citizens’ access to digital public services, including through mobile devices.
 
News from: BPTO

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AGREEMENT: Exports will have $ 10 billion more

26/07/2019

Much has been said about the free market agreement between Southern Common Market and the European Union and what are the impacts on the Brazilian economy. According to the National Confederation of Industry (CNI), the deal could add nearly $ 10 billion in exports from Brazil to the EU. Negotiated for over 20 years, it represents the largest trade pact ever signed by both parties, with the creation of a market of 780 million consumers.
Brazil exported more than US $ 42 billion to the EU in 2018, approximately 18% of the total exported by the country. This means that reducing tax rates and legislation, the deal offers even greater business opportunities for domestic companies. However, the pact also underscores the need for change in the policies of national companies.
According to Rodrigo Zambon, the subregional director of TMF Group in Brazil, the deal will take some time to go into effect, giving companies the time to make adjustments. “The deal still needs to go through 28 countries, so the time to prepare your business without getting hurt is now,” he added. Check out the 5 main characteristics that must be adopted by Brazilian companies so that they can actively participate in the agreement.

FOODS

All imported food must comply with EU standards – the rules apply to all products sold in the EU, whether domestically produced or imported, so Brazilian companies need to ensure that they comply with all rules. For example: ensuring appropriate and transparent information about source, content, and labeling.

INSPECTION

Commitments on labor inspection, health, and safety at work – Companies wishing to make trade agreements in EU countries must ensure that fundamental labor rights, as defined by the International Labor Organization (ILO), are fulfilled and respected.

ENVIRONMENT

Trade agreements should not come at the expense of the environment – under the agreement, companies must promote sustainable development and agree not to lower environmental standards to promote trade and attract investment. The agreement also incorporates the so-called “precautionary principle”. If there is any suspicion of deforestation or the use of pesticides not allowed in the EU, the economic bloc can veto the importation of the Brazilian product, even when the scientific analysis is not conclusive.

PATENTS

Strong intellectual property rights provisions – Brazil has committed to updating its intellectual property law based on international standards of legislation. Examples of this strategy are the copyright section and the trademark section, which companies will have to abide by.

STANDARDIZATION

Transparency and the use of international standards – Different technical regulations and rules/standards for products from other markets can be a major obstacle for exporters because they impose extra costs for adaptation. The agreement promotes transparency and the use of international standards to facilitate market access while protecting the levels of protection that each party considers appropriate.
For Zambon, beginning to understand and implement action plans will create a competitive advantage when the deal goes into effect. “Companies that start updating their policies will now have more time to adapt and probably less costs to implement than those leaving at the last minute,” he said.
 
News from: Diário da Amazônia