UK ANNOUNCES ONLINE PATENT APPLICATION SERVICES: The UK Patent Office's customers can now apply for their patents over the Internet - thanks to a new system which came into service in August 2004. The new service, known as epoline, provides a common approach to electronically filing each type of patent application which helps to keep the costs and complexity for applicants to a minimum. Developed and tested over several years, the new service was a joint collaboration between the UK Patent Office, and the European Patent Office. The application service also applies to international patent applications under the Patent Co-operation Treaty made to WIPO in Geneva.