Final Satellite Locations Selected

Yesterday, the USPTO announced the final locations of the satellite offices it is required to open by September 14, 2014. In addition to the Detroit office opening this month (July 13, 2012), the USPTO will maintain three regional offices in Denver, Dallas and Silicon Valley.

In yesterday’s announcement (here) the USPTO noted that:

The USPTO is working to develop concept of operations for the three newly-announced locations based on the Elijah J. McCoy Detroit Office and will develop best practices based on this model over the coming months and years. The Detroit office will employ approximately 120 individuals in its first year of operations. The USPTO also seeks to identify and maximize the unique regional strengths of all four offices to further reduce the backlog of patent applications and appeals.

One would expect the Detroit office to focus on automotive technologies and Silicon Valley on computer related technologies. Dallas and Denver appear to have been selected based upon geographical and/or economic considerations. It remains to be seen exactly how the regional offices will serve the Agency and be integrated with the existing infrastructure.