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Global patent applications grow by 4.7% annually
"We have witnessed a significant increase in the use of the patent system internationally in recent years," says WIPO Director General Dr Kamil Idris. "This is clearly one indicator of the level of inventiveness and innovation that is occurring around the world and signals those areas in which technological development is most pronounced."
WIPO's report, which was published on the website this week, looks at 2005 figures, the last year for which complete worldwide statistics are available.
It shows that the number of patents granted has increased at an average annual rate of 3.6%, with 600 000 patents granted in 2005. At the end of 2005, around 5.6 million patents were in force around the globe.
Emerging economies
The Republic of Korea and China recorded the highest growth in application numbers and the northeast Asian region continues to increase its share of worldwide patenting. Between 1995 and 2005, patent filings by residents doubled in Korea and increased eight fold in China.
"While the use of the system remains highly concentrated, we are seeing a historic evolution in the geography of innovation. With increased patenting activity in newly industrialising and emerging countries, we expect the pattern of ownership of patent rights worldwide to become more diversified over the coming years," Dr Idris said.
Recording an increase of almost a third over 2004, the State Intellectual Property Office of China (SIPO) became the world's third largest recipient of patent filings in 2005.
Francis Gurry, WIPO Deputy Director General in charge of patents, believes this trend will continue in the coming years.
"Countries in northeast Asia will most likely continue to challenge their counterparts elsewhere," he said. "A few years ago, they took the patent world by surprise, but it is now very much the expectation that countries like China and the Republic of Korea will continue their rapid developments in innovation, on indicator of which is the number of patents applications filed."
The big five
More than three quarters (77%) of all patent applications in 2005 were filed at five offices - the Japan Patent Office (JPO), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), SIPO and the European Patent Office (EPO).
The five offices accounted for 74% of all patents granted in 2005, the report says.
Technological fields
The report reveals an increase in filings in the electricity and electronics sectors, which accounted for 32% of worldwide filings between 2000 and 2004.
The fastest growing fields in the same period were medical technology (+32.3%), audio-visual technology (+28.3%) and information technology (+27.7%).
More information:
- The Patent Report of the World Intellectual Property Organization
- Information on patent filings in Europe in the EPO Annual report 2006
- News item (18.6.2007): Filing numbers continue to rise
- News item (22.5.2007): The "big five offices" moves towards closer co-operation