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1903. NEW ZEALAND.

PATENTS, DESIGNS, AND TRADE MARKS: FOURTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE REGISTRAR.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly pursuant to Section 128 of " The Patents, Designs, and Trade-marks Act, 1889."

I have the honour to submit my report on the operations of the Patents, Designs, and Trademarks Office for the year ended the 31st December, 1902. The returns for 1902 show the greatest increase in business that has taken pjace in a single year, the number of applications being 1,871, or 238 per cent, more than in 1901. In that year, although the amount of business was greater than in any previous year, I was obliged to record a slight falling-off in the revenue. The opinion I then expressed that the revenue would recover itself in 1902 has been fully sustained, the amount received being £3,999 3s. 3d. This is an increase of £602 65., or 177 per cent, over the fees received in 1900, hitherto the best year in this respect. The expenditure, which includes only the ordinary items, amounts to £1,344 17s. Id., as against £1,205 15s. 2d. for the previous year, leaving a balance of £2,654 6s. 2d. The surplus last year was £2,160 17s. 2d., the increase is therefore £493 9s. When it is borne in mind that the Patent Office is not intended for revenue purposes, this result must be considered satisfactory. It will be noticed on referring to Table A that out of a total expenditure of £1,344 17s. Id. £501 6s. 9d. was in respect of work done by the Government Printing Office. Patents. • The number of applications received was 1,431 —317, or 28-4 per cent., more than in the previous year. In former years the number of applications filed with provisional specifications corresponded very closely with those filed with complete specifications, but last year the provisional specifications were greatly in excess, 911 applications being accompanied by provisional specifications and 520 by complete specifications. While it is gratifying to notice this increase, it should be remembered that a provisional specification as a rule only conveys a general idea of an invention, and until it is seen how many of these ideas are developed and embodied in complete specifications it cannot be ascertained whether the actual increase in invention in the colony is as great as the figures appear to indicate. The number of complete specifications filed after provisional specifications was 205, as compared with 111 in 1901, an increase of 94. The number of patents issued and the renewal fees paid show an advance of 26 as regards the first, 544 as compared with 518 ; and as regards the renewal fees 172 for second-term fees, as compared with 143 for the previous year, and 45 thirdterm fees, as compared with 32 for 1901. Of the remaining principal items increases will also be noticed in the cases in which extensions of time were applied for and granted for (1) lodging complete specifications after provisional specifications (20 and 16 in 1902, as compared with 13 and 10 in 1901), and (2) paying fees (20 and 20 in 1902, as compared with 19 and 17 in 1901); and in the searches made and copies supplied, the number of searches made being 340 in 1902, as compared with 284 in 1901, and the amount received for copying being £47 17s. 3d., as compared with £36 lis. lOd. for last year. A falling-off took place in the number of applications to amend specifications, 7 in 1902 as compared with 13 in 1901, and in the number of assignments and licenses registered and certificates granted, being 85 and 55 respectively in 1902, and 120 and 109 in 1901. The total fees received from patents amounted to £3,439 2s. 3d. In 1901 £2,929 13s. lOd. was received from this source, and the increase is therefore £509 Bs. sd. i—H. 10.