I have stopped filing patent applications via the USPTO Electronic Filing System - here’s why

Last year, I used the Electronic Filing System of the US Patent and Trademark Office to file patent applications electronically for the first time. I was intrigued by the process and system and decided to put in the effort necessary to use the system despite the limited benefits I could see at the time.

I think I filed close to ten applications using the EFS system last year. With practice, I became somewhat efficient in the process. But, I couldn’t get rid of the nagging question — what benefit is this providing (besides elimination of the express mailing charge). The more I focused on that question, the complexity of the process became more of an issue for me. Then, in late December, I noticed that the software wasn’t configured to recognize the new fee structure (it wouldn’t let you pay the correct amounts!). I added comments to my filings regarding the issue. Finally, the PTO responded with a mandatory download of new software. Arggh!

I chose not to download the new software. I had gotten the old package “settled in” on my system and did not want to introduce new variables (this was no small task as the old sotware requires Microsoft Word 2000. My upgrade to Office 2003 required me to keep an old copy of Word on my system just for EFS. Each time I used Word 2003, it went through the install routine. Each time I used EFS, Word 2000 went through the install routine).

Simply put, the system is too complicated, even for a computer geek like me. I beleive the current system is doomed to be one that is tried, occasionally, by early adopters and curiosity-seekers. It will not enjoy widespread use by the patent bar, and the experimentation rate will dwindle over time as the experimenters, like me, become more and more frustrated with the system.

Thankfully, as Dennis Crouch has previously posted, the PTO appears to be considering simpler alternatives.

My message to the PTO is this: If electronic filing is a priority, and it should be, please consider the simplicity of the alternative — paper filing by Express Mail is unbelievable easy, and inexpensive too. If you design a new system that is even easier than the paper alternative, patent professionals will adopt it in droves.

Isn’t it ironic that the electronic trademark system is winning awards while the patent system stands as curiousity on the sidelines?