Patent - extend territory or re-apply?

Pete · New Member Joined: 10 Mar 2008 Posts: 5

I am considering buying a small business which is for sale. The assets include a UK patent, but in order to make this business profitable and justify my investment, the patent would need to cover the USA.

Does this mean I have to apply from scratch for the patent in the USA, submit designs etc. and be subject to the US criteria, or is there an automatic process for a UK patent to just be extended to other territories for a set fee?

Same applies to Europe as I would probably want to include Europe. I am presuming I just need to cover the main markets for this product, or should I go for the whole world?

Many thanks for your replies.

CopyrightAid · Site Admin Joined: 03 Jan 2007 Posts: 281

Patents are administered at a national level or territory level so you need to apply separately in every country or territory that you want it.

In the US this is at http://www.uspto.gov/

In Europe - there is such a thing as a European Patent - see http://www.epo.org for details - so you no longer need to apply in every country at least.