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Information on the following topics is desired:
○ Development of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Databases
Since 1999, KIPO has been building search databases for domestic and overseas intellectual property rights. Currently, it acquires IPR data from 56 foreign countries, including the IP5 offices such as the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
In 2008, Korean patent literature was included in the PCT minimum documentation, which must be mandatorily consulted by patent offices worldwide during international patent examinations. This inclusion highlighted the importance of maintaining the quality of KIPO’s search databases. To this end, KIPO has established systems to systematically refine and process acquired domestic and foreign data for errors before incorporating them into the search databases.
○ Publication of Intellectual Property Gazettes
Since 1948, KIPO has published industrial property gazettes. In May 1998, the format was changed to CD-ROM, and since July 2001, gazettes have also been available through an online service.
On a monthly basis, gazettes are distributed via DVD and FTP to 17 countries and organizations.
In 2023, approximately 775,000 gazettes were published, contributing to the protection of applicants’ rights and safeguarding Korea’s intellectual property rights abroad.
○ Korean Patent Abstracts (KPA)
The KPA is an English-language abstract of the main contents of inventions published in the Korean Patent Gazette, designed to enable foreign examiners and users to understand them quickly and accurately. Each abstract consists of bibliographic data, a summary, and a representative drawing.
Including the 149,345 abstracts published in 2024, a total of 3,511,994 English abstracts have been issued to date.
IV. ICT SUPPORT TO SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES RELATED TO PATENT INFORMATION CARRIED OUT BY THE OFFICE
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