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Business Methods. Back in Business?

Chad Gilles
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The USPTO has three art unit groups for business methods:

  • 3620 Business Methods – Incentive Programs, Coupons; Operations Research; Electronic Shopping; Health Care; Point of Sale, Inventory, Accounting; Cost/Price, Reservations, Shipping and Transportation; Business Processing
  • 3680 Business Methods – Incentive Programs, Coupons; Electronic Shopping; Business Cryptography, Voting; Health Care; Point of Sale, Inventory, Accounting; Business Processing, Electronic Negotiation
  • 3690 Business Methods – Finance/Banking/ Insurance

These three art unit groups have NOT fared equally well under the 2019 Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance.

The first chart below is 3620. The overall allowance rate (reminder: mileage may vary when looking at the overall allowance rate for an art unit) is basically back to where it was in the 18 months before Alice.

Chart showing allowance rates in art unit group 3620 are back to pre-Alice levels

Next is 3680. Overall allowance rate has also recovered to Pre-Alice levels.

Chart showing allowance rates in art unit group 3680 are back to pre-Alice levels

Now, here’s 3690:

Chart showing allowance rates in art unit group 3690 are well down from pre-Alice levels

. . .

Whammy

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