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CNIPA released the statistics of the first half of 2019: the main indicators are in line with expectations, and the comprehensive strength is steadily improving
The regular press conference for the 3rd quarter of 2019 by CNIPA
On July 9, China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) held a regular press conference for the 3rd quarter of 2019 in Beijing, centrally publishing the semi-annual statistics of patents, trademarks, geographical indications, and layout design of integrated circuits, as well as the IP development trends and progress of China embodied in these statistics.
The statistics shows that in the first half of 2019, China's major intellectual property indicators were in line with development expectations, and the comprehensive strength of intellectual property rights has been steadily enhanced.
Major Statistics
For patent:
In the first half of 2019, the number of invention patent applications in China was 649,000, down 9.4% year on year; a total of 238,000 invention patents were granted with a year-on-year increase of 9.9%. In particular, 192,000 domestic invention patents were granted, 183,000 of which were the service inventions, accounting for 95.2%, and 9,000 were the non-service invention, accounting for 4.8%. In the first half of the year, the top 3 enterprises in China (Mainland China only) with the most granted invention patents in order were: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (2,314), China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (1,595) and OPPO Guangdong Mobile Communications Co., Ltd. (1,312).
As of the end of June 2019, the number of domestic invention patent ownership (Mainland China only) reached 1.74 million, and the number of invention patents per 10,000 people was 12.5. The top 3 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) with the most invention patents per 10,000 people in order were: Beijing (121.8), Shanghai (50.9), and Jiangsu Province (28.5).
In the first half of 2019, the CNIPA accepted 24,000 international patent applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) in total, up by 4.9% year on year, 22,000 of which were domestic applications, increasing by 2.8% year-on-year. In the first half of the year, the top 3 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) that received the most PCT applications, in turn, were: Guangdong Province (9,807), Beijing (3,179), and Jiangsu Province (1,920).
In the first half of 2019, a total of 23,000 reexamination requests were accepted, with a 22.9% yearly increase; 17,000 cases were closed, with a year-on-year increase of 11.0%. 2,800 invalidation requests were accepted, growing by 12.8% year on year; 2,900 cases were closed, with a year-on-year increase of 18.9%.
In the first half of 2019, the examination period for invention patent was 22.7 months, and that for high-value patent was 20.5 months, utility model was 6.2 months, design was 4.0 months, patent reexamination request was 11.7 months and patent invalidation request was 5.0 months.
For trademark:
In the first half of 2019, the number of trademark applications in China was 3.438 million, with a year-on-year decrease of 4.1%; the amount of trademark registration was 3.515 million, with a yearly increase of 67.8%. As of the end of June, the number of valid trademark registrations in China was 22.743 million, an increase of 35.3% year-on-year, and on average, 5.2 market entities had one valid trademark.
In the past half year, a total of 198,000 trademark review cases were received, and 159,000 cases were closed. The number of applications for the Madrid International Registration of Marks from China was 2,849. As of the end of June 2019, the number of valid applications for the Madrid International Registration of Marks from China has reached 35,000.
In the first half of 2019, the average examination period for trademark registration was shortened to less than 5 months, and for trademark transfer, it was reduced to less than 4 months. The average period for the review of refused trademark was less than 7 months. The examination period of trademark modification and renewal as well as the time limit for issuing the notification of trademark registration acceptance was shortened to less than 1 month.
For geographical indication:
In the first half of 2019, China approved and registered 229 geographical indication trademarks, and 116 enterprises were approved to use the geographical indications. By the end of June 2019, 5,090 geographical indication trademarks have been registered; 2,380 products (including 61 foreign geographical indications) have been approved to be protected by geographical indication; 8,295 enterprises have been approved to use geographical indication and 24 demonstration zones for national product of geographical indication have been built.
For the layout designs of integrated circuit:
In the past 6 months, a total of 2,904 registration applications for the layout designs of integrated circuit were received, with a year-on-year increase of 45.7%; 2,487 certificates were issued, increasing by 52.0% year over year.
For the protection and utilization of intellectual property rights:
In the first half of 2019, comprehensive law enforcements were realized in national patent and trademark administrative enforcement. 6,529 patent infringement and counterfeiting cases, and 11, 500 trademark cases were investigated in total.
In the first six months of 2019, the pledged financing amount for patents and trademarks nationwide totaled 58.35 billion yuan, increasing by 2.5% year over year, and the number of pledge projects was 3,086, with a year-on-year growth of 21.6%, among which, the amount of patent pledge financing was 40.4 billion yuan with 2,709 pledge projects, involving 13,000 patents.
According to reports, the statistics of the first half of 2019 mainly showed five features.
Main Features:
First, the goal of the invention patent ownership per 10,000 people in the national “13th Five-Year Plan” has been completed ahead of schedule.
By the end of June 2019, the ownership of invention patents per 10,000 people in China had reached 12.5, increased by 1.0 compared with the end of 2018. The goal of 12 invention patents per 10,000 people set by the 13th Five-Year Plan has been completed ahead of schedule.
Second, foreign intellectual property applications in China have grown steadily.
In the first half of the year, the number of foreign invention patent applications in China reached 78,000, up by 8.6% year on year; the number of foreign trademark applications in China was 127,000, increasing by 15.4% year on year. The sustained and steady growth of foreign invention patent and trademark applications in China shows the confidence of the international community in the protection of intellectual property rights by China.
Third, the structure of domestic invention patent applications has been continuously optimized.
In the first half of the year, the proportion of service inventions in China's domestic invention patent applications reached 91.2%, increased by 5.7% over the same period of 2018; the number of individual invention patent applications decreased by 46.0% year on year, and its proportion continued to decline, which shows that the application structure of China's domestic invention patent is constantly being optimized.
Fourth, the IP examination and registration period has continued to be shortened.
In the first half of the year, the examination period of China's high-value patent was reduced by 0.5 month compared with the beginning of 2019, and that for trademark registration was reduced by 1 month, indicating that the CNIPA has implemented the State Council's reform to streamline administration, delegate powers, and improve regulation and services and has effectively reduced the IP examination and registration period.
Fifth, the efficiency of utilization of intellectual property rights in China has been strengthened substantially.
Over the past 6 months of 2019, China's patent pledge financing projects increased by 33% year on year, among which small patent pledge financing projects with an amount of less than 10 million yuan (including 10 million yuan) accounted for 68.6%, showing more innovation-driven small and medium-sized enterprises have received financing support through the pledge of intellectual property rights, and the efficiency of the utilization of intellectual property rights in China has been strengthened substantially.
Date: July 9th, 2019
Source: National Intellectual Property Administration, PRC
