USPTO uses e-notices

U. S. Patent and Trademark Office officials have expanded their use of a Web-based bulk mailing system offered by the U.S. Postal Service.

USPTO officials said the electronic TPostal system creates electronic post cards with notifications for people who have applied for trademarks. The agency recently expanded its use of TPostal to 13 different notices of official trademark actions and deadlines. By sending about 1,000 such postcards daily, the agency saves nearly $64,000 a year on postage, agency officials said.

The online system, which USPTO officials refer to as TPostal, is based on USPS' NetPost Services.

USPTO officials use the online system to send notifications in an electronic file to a central USPS location, where addresses of trademark filers are checked against a postal address database. The Web-based system creates electronic post cards that are transferred to local post offices within 24 hours. At the local post offices, post cards are printed, stamped and mailed locally to reduce delivery times and expenses.