In a recent press release, the USPTO announced some big news – groundbreaking, if you will! It’s official. The USPTO will no longer accept faxed documents effective July 1. That’s right, the government agency that is the forefront of technology in the United States has been accepting faxed documents.
In all truth, I did not know this was even still an option. I did start my career back in the days when we would have to mail our patent applications in, and if we were up against a deadline, we would sometimes have to go to the post office at the airport, which was open 24 hours, and get our envelope stamped prior to midnight. I am not even sure when I last saw a fax machine.
The good news to all users of fax machines is that you have about another three weeks to fax the US Patent and Trademark Office all you want. After that, you might have to invest in a scanner. I hope you read this post for what it is – pure jest. I just really enjoyed when it arrived in my inbox as an “alert.” If you want to read more about the announcement from the USPTO, you can find the release here.
This article was authored by patent attorney Mark Malek. If you have questions about patents, trademarks, intellectual property protection, or USPTO procedures, contact Mark to discuss how these developments may impact your business or innovation strategy.
