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Leaner, clearer and more informative – a new web presence for the German Patent and Trade Mark Office

Press release of 20 September 2017

Munich. Large pictures, modern design, clear structure: with its totally new website the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA) aims to inform the public in the future even better than before about intellectual property rights. Today, the completely redesigned and revised website has gone online. “Thanks to the large-scale, up-to-date layout of the new website, the DPMA is now presenting itself also visually as a modern service provider on the web”, emphasises DPMA President Cornelia Rudloff-Schäffer. “Our well-proven services on offer look even better now and are even more easily accessible.”

Larger pictures and a new layout make the website clearer, improve legibility and ensure even greater user-friendliness. All IP services and IP databases of the DPMA relating to patents, utility models, trade marks and designs have always remained accessible and current during the relaunch process.

Responsive design: optimum use on all devices

The new layout is designed to fully meet the requirements of “responsive design” and therefore is also ideally suited for mobile use (for example on smartphones and tablets). The most important goal of the new website is the efficient and clear communication of contents: experts, such as patent attorneys, as well as layman users can quickly access the content relevant to them with just a few clicks. For example, all forms and information about fees can be found centrally in the section “Service”, which can be reached via direct link from the homepage. The main navigation item “Search” is also new; it concentrates and concisely presents information on the databases and search tools of the DPMA.

The new homepage gives the DPMA the opportunity to prominently highlight current issues. This is done by means of a “stage” with rotating, regularly changing articles. At the same position, users now find direct access to introductory information about everything to do with industrial property rights. Furthermore, the pages display quite a few practical new features – such as a direct link to one of the most important cooperation partners of the DPMA, the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Deutscher Patentinformationszentren (the association of regional German patent information centres).

The relaunch marks the conclusion of a complex project, which required much time and effort, and was implemented exclusively with the DPMA’s own resources. “The very extensive website was looking a bit long in the tooth“, says Cornelia Rudloff-Schäffer. “With its appealing visual appearance, the enhanced functionality and the streamlined structure, the new website of the DPMA compares well with the best web pages of authorities and service providers.” The new English homepage goes live at the same time as the German version. And it goes without saying that the DPMA is also attaching greatest importance to the accessibility of the new website.

The German Patent and Trade Mark Office

Inventiveness and creativity need effective protection. The DPMA is the German centre of expertise for all intellectual property rights - for patents, utility models, trade marks and registered designs. As the largest national patent office in Europe and the fifth largest national patent office in the world, it is committed to Germany’s future as a country of inventors in a globalised economy. Its roughly 2,600 staff based at three locations – Munich, Jena and Berlin – are service providers for inventors and companies. They implement the innovation strategies of the Federal administration and develop national, European and international IP systems further.

Last updated: 19 December 2024