The Scientific business of Thomson Reuters has published a report titled World IP Today: Patented in China - The Present and Future State of Innovation in China. The report looks at current patent trends and speculates how the world of patent information will look in five years. Patent volumes and trends are explored, as well as the underlying causes of increased innovation in China, including economic and government policy factors.
Findings from the report indicate that China's economy has shifted focus, moving away from traditional agriculture and manufacturing toward innovation-oriented activities. In essence, the nation has increased its overall research and development budget; introduced tax breaks and monetary incentives to increase indigenous innovation; and continued investing in its academic institutions, which is seen to have become a driving force behind Chinese patenting. The complete copy of the Thomson Reuters World IP Today report is available online at http://scientific.thomsonreuters.com/press/pdf/tl/WIPTChina08.pdf.
According to a 2006 World Intellectual Property Organisation report, the patent offices of the US, Japan, Europe (EPO), Korea and China account for 75 percent of all patents filed and 74 percent of patents granted worldwide. An analysis of patent volumes over the past five years from these five major offices shows that inventions from China have been growing at a faster rate than any other region. China's shift from a manufacturing-based economy to a knowledge-based one requires foreign companies to re-examine their global IP strategies.
Patent activity in China grew by 470 percent from 1997 to 2006, outpacing all other countries in terms of growth. China has almost doubled its volume of patents from 2003-2007 and is set to become a strong rival to Japan and the US in years to come. Academia represents a key source of innovation in many countries. China has the largest proportion of academic innovation with Russia very occasionally beating it to the top spot. Earlier this month, the Derwent World Patents Index (DWPI) database registered its millionth patent in 2008. The millionth patent application was from ZTE Corporation, a Chinese company located in the Guangdong province in South China, and describes an improved cell phone user interface.
