Patent Office Comes to California, Where the Innovators Live

The Patent and Trademark Office is escaping its northern Virginia bubble. Go West, young trademarks!

Did you know that for years, the U.S. Patent and Trademark has operated almost entirely out of one location in northern Virginia? Kind of odd, seeing as out in California we’ve got that whole Silicon Valley thing going on. And Virginia is kind of far away.

But, no longer. The PTO announced that it is opening several new offices across the country. Can you guess where?

From the WSJ Law Blog:

The U.S. Department of Commerce on Monday announced that the agency would open three new offices, located in San Jose, Calif., Denver, and Dallas/Ft. Worth. The only other satellite office, in Detroit, is slated to open later this month.

Nicely done Colorado, Texas, and Detroit? Is Detroit were they invent things for cars that cost more and don’t work as well what they already have in Japan?

The Mercury News has more details about the new San Jose office:

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Delivering Silicon Valley a long-coveted prize, the U.S. Department of Commerce has selected San Jose to a get new U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The Commerce Department will make the long-awaited announcement Monday, said Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose.

“Fabulous!” said Kim Walesh, the economic development director of San Jose, which dangled a 20,000-square-foot floor in City Hall among other enticements for picking the city.

So fabulous! Do you think they will decorate the office with sequins, too?

No but seriously, it is a big win for the Valley. There was hot competition for the new PTO office. According to the Mercury news, more than 600 cities applied to “host the first ever expansion” of the patent office.

I suppose the only reasonable conclusion is that, as Jim Morrison said: the West is the best. Get here, and we’ll do the rest.

San Jose to get major, federal prize: A new U.S. Patent Office in the heart of Silicon Valley [Mercury News]
Law Blog Patent Roundup: The PTO Spreads Its Wings, More [WSJ Law Blog]

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