PPH MOTTAINAI

Outline

The PPH MOTTAINAI is one type of PPH program that makes the PPH available for applications found allowable/patentable regardless of the Office of First Filing (OFF). The PPH MOTTAINAI is applicable to the following cases:

When examination results from the Office of Second Filing (OSF) come out earlier
PPH MOTTAINAI scheme1
When the earliest application is filed with a third Office (other than the OEE and the OLE)
PPH MOTTAINAI scheme2

Story of PPH MOTTAINAI

"MOTTAINAI" is a Japanese word meaning "to feel sorry that something still usable is wasted or something valuable is not properly used."

Since the Normal PPH requires OFF's examination results, examination results coming out from the OSF earlier than from the OFF were wasted and it felt "MOTTAINAI" to both applicants and IP Offices (another Japanese word "MUDA" corresponds to "wastefullness").

For this reason, eight Offices - JPO (Japan), CIPO (Canada), IP Australia (Australia), PRH (Finland), ROSPATENT (Russia), SPTO (Spain), UKIPO (UK), and USPTO (USA) - agreed in 2011 to start the "PPH MOTTAINAI" that eased PPH requirements, so that the applicant could request PPH in the above case.

PPH MOTTAINAI implementing Offices

Some PPH implementing Offices do not implement the PPH MOTTAINAI. Check PPH MOTTAINAI implementing Offices on the page of "Network."