PCT applications fall 2009, Chinese PCT applications soar
International patent filings under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) fell by 4.5% in 2009 with sharper than average declines experienced by some industrialized countries and growth in a number of East Asian countries, the WIPO announced today. Provisional data indicates that 155,900 international patent applications were filed in 2009 as compared to the nearly 164,000 applications filed in 2008.The drop-off in Germany and the USA was about 11%, while PCT filings from China increased by nearly 30%. China became the fifth largest PCT user.
The USA maintained its top ranking, filing just under a third of all international applications in 2009 (45,790), followed by Japan (+3.6%, 29,827 applications), Germany (-11.2% or 16,736 applications), South Korea (+2.1%, 8,066 applications), and China (29.7%, 7,946 applications).
The IPKat is now going back to study.
Image by Felipe Navarro, Creative Commons licensed.
