The international patent system administered by WIPO is a very beneficial way for those who seek patent protection in multiple countries. By filing an international patent application (PCT-application) the applicant can benefit from the several advantages, e.g.: (a) postpones major costs associated with international patent protection by 18 month; (b) the results from the search and preliminary opinion received during the international stage provides a strong basis for patenting decisions; (c) the PCT-system provides a harmonized base for entry of the national/regional phase after 30 month counted from the earliest priority date.
WIPO was established in 1967. It has its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, and is the global forum for intellectual property (IP) services, policy, information and cooperation. WIPO is a self-funding agency of the United Nations, with 193 member states. WIPO’s mission is to lead the development of a balanced and effective international IP system that enables innovation and creativity for the benefit of all. Among others, WIPO administers 26 treaties including the WIPO Convention.
Latest numbers on the International Patent System (PCT-System)
WIPO published on 2020-07-14 the annual PCT-Statics 2020 which reveals interesting information on the PCT-System and the global development in the field of patents for 2019. The report can be downloaded here. It analyses the data which was collected from various IP-Offices around the world.
Key numbers
The key numbers for 2019 are:
| PCT national phase entries: | 647’700 (+2.6%) |
| PCT applications filed: | 265’800 (+5.2%) |
| Countries in which PCT applications were filed: | 127 (unchanged) |
This year's report provides a descriptive analysis of PCT filing activity at a subnational level, based on the location of inventors named in published PCT applications - so called clusters of innovative activity. According to the report, identifying and analyzing clusters of PCT filings allows for a more detailed overview of where the innovations described in PCT applications took place.
The top 50 clusters of innovation
The top 50 clusters can be summarized as follows:
- Six of the eight largest PCT clusters were in East Asia
- The top 50 PCT clusters account for almost 58% of all PCT filings
- Universities are the top applicant for six clusters
- Almost a third of filings from Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou are in digital communication
- U.S. applicants filed over 10% of applications in one half of all clusters
Top Business Applicants
The report comprises a comprehensive list of applicants. The top 10 Business Applicants are:
| Ranking | Change in Position | Applicant | Origin in | Published PCT-Applications | ||
| 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | ||||
| 1 | 0 | HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD | China | 4024 | 5405 | 4411 |
| 2 | 0 | MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION | Japan | 2521 | 2812 | 2661 |
| 3 | 2 | SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD. | Republic of Korea | 1757 | 1997 | 2334 |
| 4 | -1 | QUALCOMM INCORPORATED | U.S. | 2163 | 2404 | 2127 |
| 5 | 12 | GUANG DONG OPPO MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS CORP., LTD | China | 474 | 1042 | 1927 |
| 6 | 1 | BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO.,LTD | China | 1818 | 1813 | 1864 |
| 7 | 2 | TELEFONAKTIEBOLAGET LM ERICSSON (PUBL) | Sweden | 1564 | 1645 | 1698 |
| 8 | 53 | PING AN TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) CO., LTD. | China | 23 | 336 | 1691 |
| 9 | 1 | ROBERT BOSCH CORPORATION | Germany | 1354 | 1525 | 1687 |
| 10 | -2 | LG ELECTRONICS INC | Republic of Korea | 1945 | 1697 | 1646 |
| Source: Report, page 33 | ||||||
Some selected statistics
PCT national phase entries for the top 20 origins, 2018:
Trends in PCT national phase entries for the top five origins, 2004–2018
Share of PCT national phase entries in total filings abroad for the top 20 origins, 2018
Top 20 applicants in foreign-oriented patent families using the PCT System, 2014–2016
(All four images were created by WIPO and are licensed under Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 IGO.)
