The Greater China IP Updates ¡V November 2024

By Lyndon 

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China Releases 2024 National Intellectual Property Service Industry Statistics Report

The report, covering 2023, indicates that the Intellectual Property Service Industry grew steadily, with new business models emerging and showing the continuous optimization of service supply structure and industry environment.  As of the end of 2023, about 89,000 IP service providers were existing in China, a year on year increase of 2.9%.  Among these were 5,269 patent agencies and 35,712 trademark agencies.  In addition, around 22,000 organizations offered IP legal services, 9,000 provided IP operation services, 16,000 provided IP information services, and 58,000 offered IP consulting services.  In 2023, China’s IP service industry generated approximately 285 billion in total revenue, an increase of 5.6% compared to the previous year.  For institutions adhering to enterprise financial systems, the average revenue was 3.195 million yuan.  Patent agencies recorded a total income of 46.26 billion yuan, with each agency averaging 9,349 million yuan.  Further optimization of the service supply structure has taken place in the recent time period.  Geographic coverage improved with IP service institutions now covering 89.6% of prefecture-level administrative areas, an increase of 1.5% from the previous year and 6.2% from two years ago.  Service providers became more comprehensive, with 64.9% offering at least two types of IP services and 13.4% providing three or more types of IP services.

China Sees Increased Support for Patent Commercialization

As of the end of 2023, the percentage of IP service institutions offering patent commercialization services increased significantly to 35.8%, up 5.6 percentage points from the previous year.  On the demand side, there was a clear rise in patent commercialization needs from innovators, covering IP operation, information, legal, and consulting services.  On the supply side, IP service providers facilitated corporate innovation through various services such as patent valuation, commercialization matchmaking, market positioning, and brand promotion.  In addition, the IP field saw increased employment opportunities.  As of the end of 2023, around 984,000 practitioners held jobs in the IP service industry, a 1.5% increase from the previous year.  This includes 34,396 registered patent agents, reflecting a 9.7% increase.  In 2023, 41.4% of IP service providers recruited new staff, and 15.8% hired recent graduates, with most new employees between the ages of 25 and 30.  This has led to a continual enhancement of service capabilities.  For example, there was an improvement in the level of digitization and smart services.  Digital transformation was recorded at 29.3% of institutions, and 82.4% used commercial databases or software to improve service quality.  Additionally, 40.3% of institutions provided outbound IP services for Chinese businesses expanding internationally, and 32.2% assisted foreign businesses entering the Chinese market.  IP services became more closely linked with business operations and innovation, integrating company strategies, market competition, brand positioning, compliance reviews, and risk management.  A survey found that 56.2% of respondents reported participating in formulating market competition strategies and brand positioning for enterprises.