The State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) of China accepted 928,000 applications in total for patent for invention in 2014, with a 12.5% year-on-year growth. Among the applications accepted, there were 801,000 applications from domestic applicants, accounting for 86.3% of the total amount, and 127,000 applications from foreign applicants, accounting for 13.7% of the total amount. In 2014, SIPO granted a total of 233,000 patents for invention, growing 12.3% from the year before. Among the patents granted, there were 163,000 domestic patents, accounting for 70.0% of the total amount, and 70,000 foreign patents, accounting for 30.0% of the total amount.

1. Growth of applications for patent for invention started to level off. The growth rate of 12.5% in 2014 had declined comparing to the average 20% yearly growth that lasted for a considerable time.

2. Grant of patents for invention had entered a growing path. The 12.3% year-on-year increase of granted patents for invention in 2014, which was a rather rapid growth, indicated that the building of China’s patent examination capability had taken effect and the efficiency of examination had improved continually, which offered a forceful guarantee for the creation and application of intellectual property.

3. Structure of patent application had been optimized and presented a new pattern. Applications for patent for invention reached 39.3% of the total amount of patent applications accepted in 2014, exceeding applications for utility models, which accounted for 36.8% of the total amount, and ranked as the first. The shift of focus to the patent for invention, which has higher technical level, indicated that China’s innovation level had improved continually and the patent for invention’s function as the leader in innovative development had played a more prominent role.

4. Proportion of domestic application and granted domestic patents had increased continually. Domestic applications for patent for invention reached 86.3% of the total amount of application, increased by 0.8% comparing to the year before; granted domestic patents for invention reached 70% of the total amount of granted patents for invention, increased by 0.8% comparing to the year before.

5. Dominant position of enterprises in creating intellectual property had steadied continually. In 2014, Chinese enterprises filed 485,000 applications for patent for invention and accounted for 60.5% of the amount of domestic applications for patent for invention, holding the line with the year before. Chinese enterprises were granted 92,000 patents for invention, accounting for 56.4% of the total amount of granted domestic patents for invention, increased by 1.5 % comparing to the year before.

Date: January 16, 2015                     
Source: State Intellectual Property Office