[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 238 (Wednesday, December 12, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63839-63841]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-26847]



[[Page 63839]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

 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 
required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, invites comments on a 
proposed extension of an existing information collection: 0651-0051 
(Madrid Protocol).

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before February 11, 
2019.

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.
     Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
     Mail: Catherine Cain, Attorney Advisory, Office of the 
Commissioner for Trademarks, United States Patent and Trademark Office, 
P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information 
should be directed to Catherine Cain, Attorney Advisor, Office of the 
Commissioner for Trademarks, United States Patent and Trademark Office, 
P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450; by telephone at 571-272-8946; 
or by email at [email protected] with ``0651-0051 comment'' in 
the subject line. 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. 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 issues an international registration 
number, publishes the registration in the WIPO Gazette of International 
Marks, and sends the certificate to the holder.
    When the international registration is issued, 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 exists, the holder may 
also file subsequent designations to request an extension of protection 
to additional countries or request extension of goods/services not 
already extended to previously designated countries.
    Under Section 71 of the Trademark Act, 15 U.S.C. 1141(k), a 
registered extension of protection 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 on or between the fifth- or 
sixth-year anniversaries of the date on which 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 website.
    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 
website. 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. Methods of Collection

    Electronically, if applicants submit the information using the TEAS 
forms. By mail or hand delivery, if applicants choose to submit the 
information in paper form.

III. Data

    OMB Number: 0651-0051.
    IC Instruments: PTO-1663, PTO-1683, PTO-2131, PTO-2132, PTO-2133, 
TEAS Global Forms.
    Type of Review: Extension of an existing information collection.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households; businesses or other 
for-profits; and not-for-profit institutions.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 14,691 responses per year. Of this 
total, the USPTO expects that 14,682 response will be submitted 
electronically via the TEAS system and 9 will be submitted on paper.
    Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take 
the public approximately between 20 minutes (0.33 hours) to seventy-
five minutes (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: 4,878.97 hours.
    Estimated Total Annual Respondent (Hourly) Cost Burden: 
$2,136,988.86. The USPTO expects that an attorney will complete the 
instruments

[[Page 63840]]

associated with this information collection. The professional hourly 
rate for an intellectual property attorney in private firms in $438. 
Using this hourly rate, the USPTO estimates that the total respondent 
cost burden for this collection is $2,136,988.86 per year.

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                                                                                                                                             Estimated
                                                                                             Estimated       Estimated                        annual
           #                        Item                Estimated time for responses          annual       annual burden       Rate         respondent
                                                                                             responses         hours                           cost
                                                    (a)                                              (b)             (c)             (d)             (e)
                                                                                                                               (a) x (b)       (c) x (d)
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1......................  Application for            0.33 (20 minutes)...................           8,540        2,818.20         $438.00   $1,234,371.60
                          International
                          Registration (TEAS).
1......................  Application for            0.58 (35 minutes)...................               1            0.58          438.00          254.04
                          International
                          Registration (paper).
2......................  Application for            0.33 (20 minutes)...................             930          306.90          438.00      134,422.20
                          Subsequent Designation
                          (TEAS).
2......................  Application for            0.58 (35 minutes)...................               1            0.58          438.00          254.04
                          Subsequent Designation
                          (paper).
3......................  Response to Notice of      0.33 (20 minutes)...................             315          103.95          438.00       45,530.10
                          Irregularity (TEAS).
3......................  Response to Notice of      0.55 (33 minutes)...................               1            0.55          438.00          240.90
                          Irregularity (paper).
4......................  Replacement Request (TEAS  0.50 (30 minutes)...................               1            0.50          438.00          219.00
                          Global).
4......................  Replacement Request        0.75 (45 minutes)...................               1            0.75          438.00          328.50
                          (paper).
5......................  Request to Record an       0.33 (20 minutes)...................               3            0.99          438.00          433.62
                          Assignment or
                          Restriction of a
                          Holder's Right to
                          Dispose of an
                          International
                          Registration (TEAS
                          Global).
5......................  Request to Record an       0.50 (30 minutes)...................               1            0.50          438.00          219.00
                          Assignment or
                          Restriction of a
                          Holder's Right to
                          Dispose of an
                          International
                          Registration (paper).
6......................  Transformation Request     0.33 (20 minutes)...................               1            0.33          438.00          144.54
                          (TEAS RF Global).
6......................  Transformation Request     0.55 (33 minutes)...................               1            0.55          438.00          240.90
                          (paper).
7......................  Petition to Director to    1 (60 minutes)......................              42           42.00          438.00       18,396.00
                          Review Denial of
                          Certification of
                          International
                          Application (TEAS
                          Global).
7......................  Petition to Director to    1.25 (75 minutes)...................               1            1.25          438.00          547.50
                          Review Denial of
                          Certification of
                          International
                          Application (paper).
8......................  Declaration of Continued   0.33 (20 minutes)...................           3,250        1,072.50          438.00      469,755.00
                          Use/Excused Nonuse of
                          Mark in Commerce Under
                          Section 71 (TEAS).
8......................  Declaration of Continued   0.42 (25 minutes)...................               1            0.42          438.00          183.96
                          Use/Excused Nonuse of
                          Mark in Commerce Under
                          Section 71 (paper).
9......................  Combined Declaration of    0.33 (20 minutes)...................           1,600          528.00          438.00      231,264.00
                          Continued Use/Excusable
                          Nonuse and
                          Incontestability Under
                          Sections 71 and 15
                          (TEAS).
9......................  Combined Declaration of    0.42 (25 minutes)...................               1            0.42          438.00          183.96
                          Continued Use/Excusable
                          Nonuse and
                          Incontestability Under
                          Sections 71 and 15
                          (paper).
                                                   -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals.............  .........................  ....................................          14,691        4,878.97  ..............    2,136,988.86
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    Estimated Total Annual (Non-hour) Respondent Cost Burden: 
$12,182,254.50. The collection has annual (non-hour) costs in the forms 
of postage costs and filing fees.

Postage Costs

    Customers may incur postage costs when submitting some of the items 
covered by this collection to the USPTO by mail. The USPTO expects that 
approximately 98% of the responses in this collection will be submitted 
electronically. Of the remaining 1 percent, the vast majority will be 
submitted by mail, for a total of 9 mailed submissions. The average 
first-class USPS postage cost for a mailed submission will be $0.50. 
Therefore, the USPTO estimates that the postage costs for the mailed 
submissions in this collection will total $4.50.

Filing Fees

    The USPTO charges fees for processing international applications 
and related requests under the Madrid Protocol, as set forth in 37 CFR 
2.6 and 37 CFR 7.6. Most of these fees are charged per class of goods 
or services. Therefore, the total fees can vary depending on the number 
of classes. Based on the minimum fee of one class per relevant 
document, the USPTO estimates that the total filing fees associated 
with this collection will be approximately $12,182,250 per year, as 
calculated in the table below.

[[Page 63841]]



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                                                                     Estimated                       Estimated
               #                              Item                    annual        Fee amount     annual filing
                                                                     responses                         costs
                                                                             (a)             (b)             (c)
                                                                                                       (a) x (b)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.............................  Application for International              7,313         $100.00     $731,300.00
                                 Registration (for certifying an
                                 international application based
                                 on a single basic application
                                 or registration, per
                                 international class) (TEAS).
1.............................  Application for International                  1          200.00          200.00
                                 Registration (for certifying an
                                 international application based
                                 on a single basic application
                                 or registration, per
                                 international class) (paper).
1.............................  Application for International              1,227          150.00      184,050.00
                                 Registration (for certifying an
                                 international application based
                                 on more than one basic
                                 application or registration,
                                 per international class) (TEAS).
1.............................  Application for International                  1          250.00          250.00
                                 Registration (for certifying an
                                 international application based
                                 on more than one basic
                                 application or registration,
                                 per international class)
                                 (paper).
1.............................  Request for Extension of                  25,600          400.00   10,240,000.00
                                 Protection of International
                                 Registration to the United
                                 States--Filed at WIPO.
2.............................  Transmitting a Subsequent                    930          100.00       93,000.00
                                 Designation under Section 7.21
                                 (TEAS).
2.............................  Transmitting a Subsequent                      1          200.00          200.00
                                 Designation under Section 7.21
                                 (paper).
4.............................  Notice of Replacement under                    1          100.00          100.00
                                 Section 7.28 (per international
                                 class) (TEAS).
4.............................  Notice of Replacement under                    1          200.00          200.00
                                 Section 7.28 (per international
                                 class) (paper).
5.............................  Request to Record an Assignment                3          100.00          300.00
                                 or Restriction, or Release of a
                                 Restriction, under Sections
                                 7.23 and 7.24 (TEAS) (paper).
5.............................  Request to Record an Assignment                1          200.00          200.00
                                 or Restriction, or Release of a
                                 Restriction, under Sections
                                 7.23 and 7.24 (paper).
6.............................  Transformation Request (per                    1          275.00          275.00
                                 international class ( TEAS RF
                                 Global).
6.............................  Transformation Request (per                    1          600.00          600.00
                                 international class) (paper).
7.............................  Petition to Director to Review                42          100.00        4,200.00
                                 Denial of Certification of
                                 International Application
                                 (TEAS).
7.............................  Petition to Director to Review                 1          200.00          200.00
                                 Denial of Certification of
                                 International Application
                                 (paper).
8.............................  Declaration of Continued Use/              3,250          125.00      406,250.00
                                 Excusable Nonuse of Mark in
                                 Commerce Under Section 71 (per
                                 international class) (TEAS).
8.............................  Declaration of Continued Use/                  1          225.00          100.00
                                 Excusable Nonuse of Mark in
                                 Commerce Under Section 71 (per
                                 international class) (paper).
8.............................  Surcharge for Filing Affidavit                 1          100.00          100.00
                                 Under Section 71 of the Act
                                 During the Grace Period, per
                                 international class (TEAS).
8.............................  Surcharge for Filing Affidavit                 1          200.00          200.00
                                 Under Section 71 of the Act
                                 During the Grace Period, per
                                 international class (paper).
9.............................  Combined Declaration of                    1,600          325.00      520,000.00
                                 Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse
                                 and Incontestability Under
                                 Sections 71 and 15 (per
                                 international class) (TEAS).
9.............................  Combined Declaration of                        1          525.00          525.00
                                 Continued Use/Excusable Nonuse
                                 and Incontestability Under
                                 Sections 71 and 15 (per
                                 international class) (paper).
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Totals....................  ................................          39,978  ..............   12,182,250.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Therefore, the USPTO estimates that the total annual (non-hour) 
cost burden for this collection, in the form of postage costs ($4.50) 
and filing fees ($12,182,250), is $12,182,254.50 per year.

IV. Request for Comments

    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.
    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.

Marcie Lovett,
Records and Information Governance Division Director, OCTO, United 
States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2018-26847 Filed 12-11-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-16-P