Annual Technical Report 2012 on Industrial Design Information Activities submitted by OHIM (CWS/ATR/ID/2012/EM)

 

Where URLs are requested below, it is preferred that either URLs which are likely to remain stable over time (three years or more) are provided, or home (main) page URLs are provided with a short explanation of how to access the corresponding information.

The expression "industrial designs" covers industrial designs and models. Offices which issue design patents should report their design patent information activities in this series of Annual Technical Reports.

 

I. Evolution of registration activities

Changes experienced in terms of application filings and grants (registrations) with respect to the previous year

In 2012, the Office received approximately 92 000 registered Community designs, a rise of over 5%. This figure includes over 9 600 international design filings, a proportion steady at over 10% of the total. For designs, the rate of growth shows a broadly consistent trend over the past three years, in spite of the economic crisis.
Design applications may contain more than one design (multiple applications).
Multiple applications account for roughly one half of all applications received.
On average, multiple applications contain 6.42 designs.

Trends or areas experiencing rapid changes with respect to the previous year

The standard for “fast-track” registration within two working days for files meeting some simple application criteria was met in 2012 (99% on target).
The Office also made good progress towards its new target of registering non-fast-tracked files within 10 working days in 99% of cases (outcome: 98.9%), and achieved a similar performance for sending the “first action” within 10 working days, where a lower target of 80% has been in place for the past two years. The Office will be examining the possibility of further tightening the target for first action in future years.
During 2011 and the beginning of 2012, important efforts and resources were put to decrease the number of pending applications for a declaration of invalidity against RCDs. The Office took action to assign more examiners and as a result 439 cases were closed during 2012 - more than twice the figure for the previous year.
This meant that the timeliness objective for notifying design invalidity decisions within 10 weeks was met in 100% of cases in the last three quarters. In spite of the slow start, the overall compliance figure for the year was 93%, putting the Office on target for achieving the objective in 2013.

URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that provide statistics related to industrial designs

http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/OHIM/statistics.en.do

II. Matters concerning the generation, reproduction, and distribution of industrial design documents and of secondary sources of industrial design information, i.e., official gazettes

Publishing, including printing, copying techniques and electronic printing

The Community Designs Bulletin contains RCD registrations, entries made in the Register and renewal information (Article 73 CDR and Articles 14-16 CDIR). The following items can be found in the Community Designs Bulletin:

- Registered Community designs
- Entries in the Register subsequent to registration
- Renewals and information on expired registrations

Furthermore, a section for public notification (Article 52 CDIR) is established.

The Design Bulletin is published once every working day of the Office.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/RCD/RCDBulletin.en.do

Main types of announcements of the Office in the field of industrial design information

Vademecum
http://oami.europa.eu/bulletin/rcd/rcd_bulletin_en.htm

RCD Bulletin
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/RCD/RCDBulletin.en.do

RCD-Online
RCD-online provides ready access to information on registered Community design (RCD) registrations. The information is taken from the internal systems used by OHIM to process design registrations as published in the Community Designs Bulletin.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/databases/searchRCD.en.do

EUROLOCARNO
EuroLocarno is a list of products based on the Locarno Classification, the international classification for designs prepared under the aegis of WIPO. EuroLocarno has been prepared by OHIM for the purposes of classification of the products indicated in RCDs as well as in RCD applications. Over 11,000 terms are available in all the official languages of the EU.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/databases/eurolocarno.en.do

III. Matters concerning classifying, reclassifying and indexing of industrial design information according to the classification systems applied

Classification and reclassification activities; Classification system used, e.g., International Classification for Industrial Designs (Locarno Classification), other classification (please indicate whether industrial designs are classified by your Office and, if so, which classification is used)

Classification system: Locarno Classification

IV. Search file establishment and upkeep

V. Activities in the field of computerized search systems for industrial designs

In-house systems (online/offline)

The OHIM uses for internal searches two systems not available to the public: Eurodesign and QFMan

External databases

Searching the Register Community Design database: RCD-Online provides ready access to information on registered Community design (RCD) registrations.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/databases/searchRCD.en.do

Search classification for designs: Eurolocarno
Eurolocarmo is a list of products based on the Locarno Classification, the international classification for designs prepared under the aegis of WIPO. EuroLocarno has been prepared by OHIM for the purposes of classification of the products indicated in RCDs as well as in RCD applications. http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/databases/eurolocarno.en.do

Representative consultation service
http://oami.europa.eu/FRP/RequestManager?transition=start&source=Log-in.html&language=en&application=FRP


eSearch Plus
eSearch Plus allows to search and monitor Community trade marks and registered Community designs, as well as look for owners, representatives and related case-law. Aimed at improving the search online user experience, by providing a wide range of search criteria, easy-to-use sorting and filtering options and the possibility to set up your own alerts using RSS feeds.
http://esearch.oami.europa.eu/copla/index;jsessionid=81F1E31C129EDDD6654D2D4D5F618E1A.esearch1

VI. Administration of industrial design information products and services available to the public (relating to facilities, e.g., for lodging applications, registering designs, assisting clients with search procedures, obtaining official publications and registry extracts)

Information services available to the public (including computerized services and search files contained in libraries remote from your Office and industrial design information posted by your Office on the World Wide Web)

E-filing is a service provided by OHIM, which enables users to apply for a Register Community Design online.
OHIM provides a business-to-business solution for its larger clients where, based on an agreed transfer mechanism across the Internet, our clients can send their RCD applications directly from their own back-office systems directly to OHIM.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/forms/electronic/fileApplicationRCD.en.do

E-renewal is a service provided by OHIM in order to enable users to renew a RCD online.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/forms/electronic/fileRenewalRCD.en.do

My Page: RCD users can sign up for their own personalized, easy-to-use, free and secure platform: MyPage. This tool offers direct access to every OHIM external database, to e-filing system and to the user´s personal data held by the OHIM.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/MyPage.en.do

URLs of web pages of the Office's website for electronic filing of industrial design applications

http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/forms/electronic/fileApplicationRCD.en.do

URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that provide information on business procedures such as: filing, publication, examination and registration procedures related to industrial designs; opposition and appeal procedures related to industrial designs; etc.

http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/RCD/regProcess/regProcess.en.do
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/RCD/FAQ/FAQ.en.do

URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that provide a description of information products and services offered by the Office (e.g., industrial design search service(s) and industrial design databases), as well as information on how to access and utilize them

http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/RCD/index.en.do
https://www.tmdn.org/tmdsview-web/welcome

VII. Matters concerning mutual exchange of industrial design documentation and information

OHIM holds a wide range of cooperation and consultation meetings with stakeholders in EU including national IP offices, the European Commission user groups and representatives of the judiciary.

OHIM Cooperation Fund
The OHIM Cooperation Fund is designed to promote further harmonization, modernize national IP offices, and make things easier for users of the European trade mark and design systems.
During the course of 2012, the Cooperation Fund made progress, thanks to the dedication and energy of the EU National Offices and the Benelux Intellectual Property Office (BOIP), user associations, the EPO and WIPO, all of whom participated fully in the design and development of the tools.
DesignView formed part of the suite of Cooperation Fund tools launched in November 2012. By the end of 2012, seven national EU offices and OHIM were participating in the tool, which makes
information on one million designs available to members of OHIM´s design community and the design industry as a whole.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/OHIMCooperationFund.en.do.

VIII. Matters concerning education and training, including technical assistance to developing countries (please indicate URLs of web pages of the Office’s website wherever appropriate)

OHIM has always put emphasis on understanding users of RCD system and responding to their needs.

The OHIM website remains the most important information resource. The content, in five languages, is updated daily, and it's the home for the office's monthly electronic magazine, Alicante News.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/OHIM/index.en.do

Relations with users

Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) maintains close links with all interested parties in order to ensure cooperation and harmonization across Europe as well as to ensure the best possible delivery of its services.

Cooperation inside the EU
OHIM holds a wide range of cooperation and consultation meetings with stakeholders in EU including national IP offices, the European Commission user groups and representatives of the judiciary.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/networks/networks.en.do

Cooperation with other international organisations
OHIM, the EPO and WIPO strengthened and deepened their mutual cooperation and collaboration in 2012.
Cooperation outside the EU
OHIM engaged in productive discussions with IP offices from various countries, including Brazil, Turkey, Canada, Norway, Mexico, Korea, China and the African IP organisations (OAPI and ARIPO), with a view to further expanding collaboration and embarking on joint projects of mutual interest.
The Office also concluded agreements with the EU delegations in Thailand, Russia and China to define and implement three major EU-funded projects. The projects are aimed at promoting better access to IP rights information in the three countries and regions, by encouraging the integration of IP rights into a free, open online facility based on existing tools like TMview, WIPO’s Global Brand Database, DesignView or TMclass.

Promotional activities (seminars, exhibitions, visits, advertising, etc.)

OHIM was present at the following events 2012
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/OHIM/news/eventsArchive2012.en.do

Training courses for national and foreign participants

The OHIM Academy learning platform, which was put into production in November 2012, is a software application for the administration, documentation, tracking, reporting and delivery of training courses and learning programs. It will allow OHIM to distribute online or blended courses over the Internet, with features for online collaboration.
A full training catalogue for National Offices has been developed, with twenty two modules stemming from the following topic headings:
- Examination
- Opposition
- Cancellation
- Designs
- International Registrations
- Geographical Indications
- Case Law
- Enforcement
- General IP

During 2012 more than 100 external experts from National Offices attended training programmes in the Office, including training linked to the Observatory, cooperation activities, training for trainers, and an 11 day IP Seminar held in October for participants from non-EU countries.

In 2012 four seminars for judges took place, each attracting between 30 and 80 attendees each.

In 2012 OHIM in conjunction with Interpol carried out a training event to help introduce international police trainers to the wider issues associated with infringing products, particularly those which threaten the health and safety of consumers.

Two training initiatives were developed in collaboration with Europol. The first one, held in July, aimed at raising awareness and discussing efficient ways to tackle the illicit trade in counterfeit goods. The second event, in December 2012, was an awareness conference on fake pesticides, which brought together 96 representatives, including industry experts, scientists, police, customs and regulatory bodies.

The Office organises traineeships twice a year, lasting five months each, for young university graduates of Member States of the European Union and for a number of nationals from candidate countries and third countries. These traineeships consist of work experience in one of the services of the Office.

In conjunction with a network of universities across the EU, the Academy´s University Network Programme gives students the possibility of coming to OHIM´s headquarters in Alicante, to discuss a topic for their Master’s thesis with senior OHIM staff, who act as research advisors.

Moreover the Office welcomes national experts seconded from the industrial property offices (“SNEs”), benefiting from the high level of their professional knowledge and experience.

IX.Other general information related to the Office that is available on the Internet -- URLs of web pages of the Office’s website that:

provide information on legislation related to industrial designs

http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/RCD/legalReferences/legalReferences.en.do

contain the Annual Report of the Office

OHIM’s Annual Report for 2012 is available only online in Multimedia version or in PDF format.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/OHIM/OHIMPublications/annualReport.en.do

if necessary, provide further information related to the topics referred to in the current ATR

Quality Plus
The Office is committed to listening to users' needs and putting in place measures to maintain and improve the quality of services. This section provides access to the Office's quality policy, the Service Charter, User Satisfaction Survey, and guidance on how to file a complaint. You will also find information on cooperation projects with IP offices in member states and internationally.
Networks and Users' Groups includes:
• The OHIM Users' Group
• Judges' seminars and symposiums, and the OHIM Universities Network
• Information about OHIM's participation in networks with other major IP offices.
• Technical cooperation agreements, the OHIM Cooperation Fund, Convergence Programme.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/index.en.do
User Satisfaction Surveys
The Office is conducting two types of surveys:

- Specific Real Time Satisfaction Surveys, covering specific areas of particular interest;
- One global User Satisfaction Survey each year.

The objective of both types of Satisfaction Surveys is to identify areas of improvement and to enable the Office to set appropriate priorities to enhance its services and to measure overall satisfaction.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/USS.en.do

Complaints Unit
Complaints Unit handles written complaints about the processing of CTM and RCD files.
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/complaintsUnit.en.do

provide open source codes related to industrial design information systems

DS-XML is created for the exchange of data on Designs.
http://www.tm-xml.org/DS-XML/DS-XML_xml/index.xml

contain industrial design-related news regarding the Office

OHIM publishes an online Official Journal, an Annual Report, and two newsletters:
• Alicante News provides a monthly update of information about the Office, including interviews, developments in e-business services, and case-law. It is available in English.
• The IP Cooperation and Convergence newsletter has the latest news on the progress the OHIM and national intellectual property offices are making in modernising their tools and bringing closer their working methods. This bi-monthly publication is available in 22 EU official languages.

X. Other relevant matters