By Christopher P. Singer —

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will be releasing an
updated version of private PAIR (Patent Application Information Retrieval),
which allows registered practitioners access to information regarding their
patent applications electronically. To
announce the launch, the USPTO will be holding a webinar on Tuesday, December
19, 2006 at 1:00 pm (Eastern). If you
are a PAIR user, or are considering using PAIR, you can sign up for this 90
minute broadcast here.

Some of the new features include: Customer Number Details Online
Self-Administration, Attorney Docket Number Online Self-Administration, Pending
Non-Published PCT Application Search, Ordering of Certified Copies for Private
Applications via Private PAIR, XML Application Data Download, and a Display
References Tab that will have two more sections of references.