The Greater China IP Updates ¡V May 2024

By Lyndon 

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Chinese Firms Significantly Increase Patent Applications in Europe in 2023

Patent filings from China at the European Patent Office (EPO) reached a record high of 20,735 in 2023.  This was an increase of 8.8% from 2022, according to information recently released by the EPO.  In 2023, the EPO received 199,275 patent filings from around the world, up 2.9% from 2022.  The US led the way with 48,155 filings, followed by Germany with 24,966, Japan with 21,520, and China with 20,735.  Digital communication, medical technology, and computer technology emerged as the top 3 fields with the most patent applications at the EPO in 2023.  Digital communication had the highest number of filings at 17,749, up 8.6% from 2022.  Filings in computer technology, medical technology and measurement had respective increases of 1.2%, 1.3%, and 3.5%.  China dominated in digital communication filings, representing 28.3% of the total in 2023.  China also led in the sector of electrical machinery, apparatus, and energy.  The index highlighted that digital communication, computer technology, and electrical machinery, apparatus, and energy were China’s top three filing sectors, collectively accounting for 48% of China’s total filings in 2023.  In terms of individual applicants, Huawei was once again the leading applicant at the EPO with more than 5,000 filings, up 12.6%.  Multiple Chinese firms ranked within the top 50 patent applicants, with ZTE and CATL securing the 16th and 18th positions through their respective 947 and 832 filings respectively.  However, in contrast to the great improvements China has made in the fields of digital technology, AI, and other emerging fields, China lags behind the US and several other countries in areas like computer technology and medical technology.