The United Nations’ World Intellectual Property Indicators Report-2019 revealed exponential growth in global Intellectual Property (IP) filing activity. Over 3.3 million patent filings were recorded worldwide in 2018, an impressive increase of 5.2% from the previous year. Asia, accounting for two-thirds of these applications, emerged as the prime hub for IP applications. Despite China dominating the worldwide growth in 2018’s IP filings, the United States noted its first decline since 2009. Meanwhile, India witnessed significant growth in Trademark filing (+20.9%), Patent filings (+7.5%), and Industrial design filing (+13.6%) activities.
Growth in Global IP Filing Activity
The surge in global IP filings highlights the growing recognition towards protection of intellectual assets. IP rights provide inventors with rightful ownership and control over their creations and innovations. Key facilitating factors contributing to this growth are technological advancements, significant R&D investments, and an amplified focus on innovation.
The Asian IP Powerhouse: Dominance of China and India
Asia has become a hotspot for IP applications, with China leading the pack. Despite marking its first decline since 2009, the US struggles to keep pace with China’s rapid growth in IP filings. Meanwhile, India emerges as another strong contender, marking almost double-digit growth in 2018. This marks India’s third consecutive year of doubled-digit growth.
India’s Robust Intellectual Property Ecosystem
From 2015 to 2017, applicants residing in India made up about 16.8% of total published applications, with most patents pertaining to the pharmaceutical sector. Although the percentage of withdrawn or abandoned applications was highest in India at 66.2%, the country succeeded in reducing its number of pending applications by 25% in 2018 compared to 2017.
Table: Snapshot of India’s IP Ecosystem
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| Type of Filing | Growth in 2018 |
|---|---|
| Trademark Filing | +20.9% |
| Patent Filings | +7.5% |
| Industrial Design Filing | +13.6% |
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Understanding Intellectual Property Rights
IP rights are divided into different forms including trademarks, patents, copyrights, and industrial design rights.
Trademarks identify and distinguish the source of goods from one party to those of others. They can last forever, as long as the owner continues using the mark in commerce to indicate the source of goods and services.
On the other hand, a patent is a property right related to an invention, granted by the Trademark Office in exchange for public disclosure of the invention. It lasts for 20 years in India and covers machines, manufactured articles, industrial processes, and chemical compositions.
Copyrights protect works of authorship that have been tangibly expressed in a physical form such as songs, books, movies, and works of art.
Lastly, Industrial Design constitutes the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article, including three-dimensional features like shape or two-dimensional features like patterns, lines, or colors.
Last Modified: February 6, 2024