The UK Intellectual Property Office has launched a public consultation (pdf) on proposals to introduce a fast-track system for patent and trade mark applications. The plan builds on a suggestion made in the Gowers Review of Intellectual Property. HM Treasury commissioned former Financial Times editor Andrew Gowers to review …

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Tuesday 25th September 2007 10:31 GMT Anonymous Coward

The strength of the UK patent system ...

is mostly that it does not grant patents for trivial or frivolous applications that are not really inventions, such as amazon's one-click. If the UK patent office awards a patent, it's probably for a genuine invention rather than the bogus trash that the USA patent office accepts.

So above all, any changes to UK patent law should NOT result in the dilution of its present strengths. If it causes patents comparable to the present to happen faster, then fine -- but any weakening of its present diligence or any increase in the present scope would be a very bad step.

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Tuesday 25th September 2007 13:57 GMT Anonymous Coward

Just makes patenting slower and/or more expensive?

There'll still be the same amount of patenting going on, only bigger firms will of course pay the premium for "fast tracking", while smaller applicants will just get pushed to the back of the queue and receive a rubbish slow service.

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