The Chinese Patent Juggernaut

China has toppled Japan from No 2 spot and is set to become the leader in global patent filings, specially in future technologies

- Latha Jishnu

MARCH HAS been China’s month for making a brilliant splash on the patent landscape. First there was a report from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) which said that Chinese companies and individuals had filed 48,882 international patents in 2017, displacing Japan from second place in global rankings. It was the only country to record double-digit growth in its patent applications last year. Then, there was an analysis by the Financial Times which put China at the top in the hot new blockchain technology filings.

China was very much the flavour of the WIPO report. While delighting in the record increase in international patent filings to 243,500, the Geneva organisation said it was all due to China’s contribution. WIPO chief Francis Gurry said China is expected to take the top spot from the US in three years, in applications that “represent the best new technology”. China has already knocked Japan off from second spot, making its rise to the top ineluctable.