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United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office Decisions
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Applied Psychology Research Limited (Patent) [2004] UKIntelP o20804 (15 July 2004)
URL: http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKIntelP/2004/o20804.html
Cite as:
[2004] UKIntelP o20804
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Applied Psychology Research Limited [2004] UKIntelP o20804 (15 July 2004)
For the whole decision click here: o20804
Patent decision
- BL number
- O/208/04
- Concerning rights in
- GB0002179.0
- Hearing Officer
- Mr H Jones
- Decision date
- 15 July 2004
- Person(s) or Company(s) involved
- Applied Psychology Research Limited
- Provisions discussed
- PA 1977 sections 1(2) and 130(7)
- Keywords
- Excluded fields (refused)
- Related Decisions
- None
Summary
The application relates to computer apparatus for determining the price of a contract on the basis of the total number of indications to participate in an Internet based bulk purchasing scheme. In order to encourage individuals to register their intentions to participate early, a financial incentive is offered by way of a lower price at the start of the scheme as compared to the end. In refusing the application , the hearing officer found that the invention was concerned merely with providing an improved transactional process over a computer network and therefore fell within the exclusions from patentability, both as a business method and a computer program for its implementation. The hearing officer went on to find that the invention did not provide a technical contribution required to make an otherwise excluded invention patentable.