[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 8 (Thursday, January 12, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1917-1919]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-409]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Madrid Protocol
ACTION: Proposed collection; comment request.
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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), as part
of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden,
invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this
opportunity to comment on the continuing information collection, as
required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44
U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).
DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before March 12, 2012.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
Email: [email protected]. Include ``0651-
0051 comment'' in the subject line of the message.
Mail: Susan K. Fawcett, Records Officer, Office of the
Chief Information Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office,
P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.
Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information
should be directed to Sharon Marsh, Deputy Commissioner for Trademark
Examination Policy, Office of the Commissioner for Trademarks, United
States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1451, Alexandria, VA
22313-1451, by telephone at (571) 272-8900, or by email to
[email protected]. Additional information about this collection is
also available at http://www.reginfo.gov under ``Information Collection
Review.''
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
This collection of information is required by the Trademark Act of
1946, 15 U.S.C. 1051 et seq., which provides for the Federal
registration of trademarks, service marks, collective trademarks and
service marks, collective membership marks, and certification marks.
Individuals and businesses that use or intend to use such marks in
commerce may file an application to register the marks with the United
States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
The Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the
International Registration of Marks (``Madrid Protocol'') is an
international treaty that allows a trademark owner to seek registration
in any of the participating countries by filing a single international
application. The International Bureau (IB) of the World Intellectual
Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva, Switzerland, administers the
international registration system. The Madrid Protocol Implementation
Act of 2002 amended the Trademark Act to provide that: (1) The owner of
a U.S. application or registration may seek protection of its mark in
any of the participating countries by submitting a single international
application to the IB through the USPTO, and (2) the holder of an
international registration may request an extension of protection of
the international registration to the United States. The Madrid
Protocol became effective in the United States on November 2, 2003, and
is implemented under 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1141 et seq. and 37 CFR part 2 and
part 7.
An international application submitted through the USPTO must be
based on an active U.S. application or registration and must be filed
by the owner of the application or registration. The USPTO reviews the
international application to certify that it corresponds to the data
contained in the existing U.S. application or registration before
forwarding the international application to the IB. The IB then reviews
the international application to determine whether the Madrid filing
requirements have been met and the required fees have been paid. If the
international application is unacceptable, the IB will send a notice of
irregularity to the USPTO and the applicant. The applicant must respond
to the irregularities to avoid abandonment, unless a response from the
USPTO is required. After any irregularities are corrected and the
application is accepted, the IB registers the mark, publishes the
registration in the WIPO Gazette of International Marks, and sends a
certificate to the holder.
When the mark is registered, the IB notifies each country
designated in the application of the request for extension of
protection. Each designated country then examines the request under its
own laws. Once an international registration has been issued, the
holder may also file subsequent designations to request an extension of
protection to additional countries.
Under Section 71 of the Trademark Act, a registered extension of
protection
[[Page 1918]]
to the United States will be cancelled unless the holder of the
international registration periodically files affidavits of continued
use in commerce or excusable nonuse. The first affidavit must be filed
five years after the USPTO registers an extension of protection.
This collection includes the information necessary for the USPTO to
process applications for international registration and related
requests under the Madrid Protocol. The USPTO provides electronic forms
for filing the items in this information collection online (except for
the Request to Record an Assignment or Restriction of a Holder's Right
to Dispose of an International Registration) using the Trademark
Electronic Application System (TEAS), which is available through the
USPTO Web site. The USPTO is proposing to add one item, the Combined
Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse and Incontestability
Under Sections 71 and 15, which is an existing information requirement
that was not previously covered under this collection.
Applicants may also submit the items in this collection on paper or
by using the forms provided by the IB, which are available on the WIPO
Web site. The IB requires Applications for International Registration
and Applications for Subsequent Designation that are filed on paper to
be submitted on the official IB forms.
II. Method of Collection
By mail, hand delivery, or electronically to the USPTO.
III. Data
OMB Number: 0651-0051.
Form Number(s): PTO-1553, PTO-1583, PTO-2131, PTO-2132, PTO-2133.
Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Affected Public: Individuals or households; businesses or other
for-profits; and not-for-profit institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 6,620 responses per year.
Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take
the public approximately 15 minutes to one hour and 15 minutes (0.25 to
1.25 hours) to complete the information in this collection, including
the time to gather the necessary information, prepare the forms or
documents, and submit the completed request to the USPTO.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 1,711 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $581,740. The USPTO
expects that the information in this collection will be prepared by
attorneys. Using the estimated rate of $340 per hour for attorneys in
private firms, the USPTO estimates that the respondent cost burden for
submitting the information in this collection will be approximately
$581,740 per year.
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Estimated Estimated
Item Estimated time for response annual annual burden
responses hours
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Application for International Registration (PTO- 15 minutes..................... 3,900 975
2131 TEAS).
Application for International Registration 30 minutes..................... 20 10
(paper, no form).
Application for Subsequent Designation (PTO- 15 minutes..................... 400 100
2132 TEAS).
Application for Subsequent Designation (paper, 20 minutes..................... 5 2
no form).
Response to Notice of Irregularity (PTO-2133 15 minutes..................... 1,000 250
TEAS).
Response to Notice of Irregularity (paper, no 30 minutes..................... 5 3
form).
Replacement Request (TEAS Global form)......... 30 minutes..................... 15 8
Replacement Request (paper, no form)........... 45 minutes..................... 5 4
Request to Record an Assignment or Restriction 30 minutes..................... 5 3
of a Holder's Right to Dispose of an
International Registration (paper, no form).
Transformation Request (TEAS Global form)...... 15 minutes..................... 20 5
Transformation Request (paper, no form)........ 30 minutes..................... 10 5
Petition to Director to Review Denial of 1 hour......................... 30 30
Certification of International Application
(TEAS Global form).
Petition to Director to Review Denial of 1 hour and 15 minutes.......... 5 6
Certification of International Application
(paper, no form).
Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse 15 minutes..................... 700 175
of Mark in Commerce Under Section 71 (PTO-1553
TEAS).
Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse 18 minutes..................... 100 30
of Mark in Commerce Under Section 71 (paper,
no form).
Combined Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable 15 minutes..................... 300 75
Nonuse and Incontestability Under Sections 71
and 15 (PTO-1583 TEAS).
Combined Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable 18 minutes..................... 100 30
Nonuse and Incontestability Under Sections 71
and 15 (paper, no form).
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Totals..................................... ............................... 6,620 1,711
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Estimated Total Annual Non-hour Respondent Cost Burden: $745,480.
This collection has annual (non-hour) costs in the form of filing fees
and postage costs.
The USPTO charges fees for processing international applications
and related requests under the Madrid Protocol as set forth in 37 CFR
7.6. In addition to these USPTO fees, applicants must also pay
international filing fees to the IB as indicated in 37 CFR 7.7. The
USPTO estimates that the total filing fees in the form of USPTO
processing fees associated with this collection will be approximately
$745,250 per year as calculated in the accompanying table.
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Estimated Estimated
Item annual Fee amount annual filing
responses costs
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Application for International Registration (for certifying an 2,000 $100.00 $200,000.00
international application based on a single basic application
or registration, per international class) (PTO-2131 TEAS)......
[[Page 1919]]
Application for International Registration (for certifying an 10 100.00 1,000.00
international application based on a single basic application
or registration, per international class) (paper, no form).....
Application for International Registration (for certifying an 1,900 150.00 285,000.00
international application based on more than one basic
application or registration, per international class) (PTO-2131
TEAS)..........................................................
Application for International Registration (for certifying an 10 150.00 1,500.00
international application based on a single basic application
or registration, per international class) (paper, no form).....
Application for Subsequent Designation (PTO-2132 TEAS).......... 400 100.00 40,000.00
Application for Subsequent Designation (paper, no form)......... 5 100.00 500.00
Response to Notice of Irregularity (PTO-2133 TEAS).............. 1,000 0.00 0.00
Response to Notice of Irregularity (paper, no form)............. 5 0.00 0.00
Replacement Request (per international class) (TEAS Global form) 15 100.00 1,500.00
Replacement Request (per international class) (paper, no form).. 5 100.00 500.00
Request to Record an Assignment or Restriction of a Holder's 5 100.00 500.00
Right to Dispose of an International Registration (paper, no
form)..........................................................
Transformation Request (TEAS Global form)....................... 20 375.00 7,500.00
Transformation Request (paper, no form)......................... 10 375.00 3,750.00
Petition to Director to Review Denial of Certification of 30 100.00 3,000.00
International Application (TEAS Global form)...................
Petition to Director to Review Denial of Certification of 5 100.00 500.00
International Application (paper, no form).....................
Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse of Mark in 700 100.00 70,000.00
Commerce Under Section 71 (per international class) (PTO-1553
TEAS)..........................................................
Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse of Mark in 100 100.00 10,000.00
Commerce Under Section 71 (per international class) (paper, no
form)..........................................................
Combined Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse and 300 300.00 90,000.00
Incontestability Under Sections 71 and 15 (per international
class) (PTO-1583 TEAS).........................................
Combined Declaration of Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse and 100 300.00 30,000.00
Incontestability Under Sections 71 and 15 (per international
class) (paper, no form)........................................
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Totals...................................................... 6,620 .............. 745,250.00
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The public may submit the items in this collection to the USPTO by
mail through the United States Postal Service. The USPTO estimates that
approximately 255 of the 6,620 total responses for this collection may
be filed on paper and submitted by mail. The average first-class
postage cost for a mailed submission will be 90 cents, for a total
postage cost of approximately $230 per year.
The total non-hour respondent cost burden for this collection in
the form of filing fees and postage costs is estimated to be $745,480
per year.
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information;
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on respondents, e.g., the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized or
included in the request for OMB approval of this information
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.
Dated: January 6, 2012.
Susan K. Fawcett,
Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2012-409 Filed 1-11-12; 8:45 am]
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