Korea ranks 11th in international patent applications

Korea ranked 11th in applying for international patents under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) by making 1,514 applications last year, up 91.6 percent from the previous year. The Geneva-based World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) said Tuesday that the total number of applications received for international patents last year under the PCT increased 22.9 percent from 1999. The number of cases exceeded 90,000 for the first time in history.

WIPO attributed the increase to the drastic rise in applications from developing countries including Korea, which accounted for about half of the 3,152 cases submitted by developing nations.

Among the 109 PCT member countries, the United States topped the list of applicants with 48 percent, followed by Germany with 13.2 percent, Japan with 10.3 percent, Britain with 6.1 percent and France with 4.0 percent. These countries have taken the top five posts on the list for the past ten years. Next came Sweden with 3,071 applications, the Netherlands with 2,587, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein with 1,701 each. Australia ranked ninth with 1,627 and Canada 10th with 1,600.

An official of the Korean mission to WIPO analyzed that Korean applications for international patents increased sharply last year due to the advantage of PCT, under which they could have their rights protected in many countries with only one patent. He also cited the enthusiasm of local companies and inventors for advancing into international markets.