China witnesses increase in quantity and quality of valid invention patents

Beijing, The Gulf Observer: China has witnessed an increase in both the quantity and quality of valid invention patents in 2022, the country’s top intellectual property (IP) regulator said on Monday.

In 2022, a total of 798,000 invention patents were authorized by the country, with the number of high-value invention patents applied per 10,000 people reaching 9.4, said Shen Changyu, head of the National Intellectual Property Administration, at a press conference in Beijing.

Thanks to the country’s promotion of talent dividend, China has established the world’s largest higher education system with 240 million people having received higher education out of its 1.4 billion population, according to data released by the Ministry of Education last May.

The country’s fiscal spending on education remained above four percent of its GDP for 10 consecutive years, which has laid the foundations for the emergence of the country’s high-quality labor force.

In addition, China’s total expenditure on research and development (R&D) crossed the 3-trillion-yuan mark to reach nearly 3.09 trillion yuan ($456 billion) in 2022, up 10.4 percent year on year, the National Bureau of Statistics announced in January.

Topping the world in IP applications

Shen also pointed out that China led the world in international patent application volume in 2022, according to the latest statistics issued by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

China filed over 70,000 applications under its Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) for patent protection, followed by the United States, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Germany, according to the organization.

Of all the companies, Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies was the top filer, with 7,689 published PCT applications, according to data.

According to WIPO, China accessed its international design registration system last year and came second in filing for protection through the international design system. The organization also said with China’s accession, the demand for design protection “saw double-digit growth.”

Data showed that the country placed third in filing international trademark applications.

Rising to 11th in Global Innovation Index

During the press conference, Shen also mentioned that China rose to 11th on the Global Innovation Index 2022, up from 12th in 2021, according to WIPO.

Switzerland, the United States, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands rounded out the top five, said the WIPO report.

Beijing has stepped up efforts in recent years to transform itself into an intellectual property powerhouse. China, which ranked 34th a decade ago, is now on the verge of entering the top 10. It’s a result of unremitting efforts, said Daren Tang, director general of the WIPO.

He noted that the Chinese government attaches great importance to intellectual property rights, and has created an innovation ecosystem in a very comprehensive way.

The R&D spending in China has increased in recent years, and the brand value of traditional and emerging companies has increased in a short period of time, said Dr. Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, co-editor of The Global Innovation Index at WIPO.

Promoting talent dividend

In 2021, China issued a major plan on intellectual property rights (IPR) protection and application work for the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), highlighting talent cultivation, innovation, application and protection in the sector, according to IPR authorities.

The plan is a blueprint with detailed targets for the country to embark on a journey to strengthen its intellectual property undertakings, the National Intellectual Property Administration (NIPA) said.

It outlines five key tasks for the five years (2021-2025) of IPR protection work to stimulate innovation vitality, sustain the development of the real economy, benefit the people through innovation, serve the open economy, and boost talent and the culture cultivation.

According to the plan, China will continue to pursue talent-driven development and give top priority to the development of human resources.

The country will regard IP talents as the most basic, core and crucial element of building an IP powerhouse, raising their important position to a strategic height.

China will also vigorously enhance their strengths, striving to consolidate the talent foundation of IP development, so as to raise the building of an IP powerhouse to a new level, said the plan.