Members of the public were invited to attend the roundtable, or to participate as panelists in the roundtable discussion. Background The number of patent applications related to computer-implemented business methods in Class 705 grew from 1,300 to 2,600 between FY 1998 and FY 1999.
Electronic commerce is an extremely significant component of today's technology-driven economy.
The industry outreach programs are intended to encompass the establishment of a customer partnership with industry, the convening of a roundtable forum, and an effort to obtain industry feedback on prior art issues. The quality programs encompass steps to enhance the technical training of examiners, revise the examination guidelines and examples, and expand current prior art search activities. The roundtable moderator was Jim Crowne, editor of BNA's Patent, Trademark and Copyright Journal . Nick Godici began with a brief introduction as to how computer-implemented business method patent applications are currently being examined. Commissioner Q. Todd Dickinson responded that the PTO already has a mechanism for dealing with questionable patents, that being re-examination.