The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

The PTO is a noncommercial federal entity and is one of fourteen bureaus within the U.S. Department of Commerce. The PTO occupies a combined total of more than 1,400,000 square feet in numerous buildings in Arlington, Virginia. Since 1991, the PTO has operated in much the same way as a private business, providing products and services to its customers in exchange for fees that fully fund its operations. More than 5,000 people are employed by the PTO, and in 1999 the PTO issued approximately 104,000 trademark registrations, an increase of 27 percent from the previous year, making it one of the busiest of government agencies. Useful PTO telephone numbers are found in Figure 4-1.