The Poster News APP:

This year is a key year for achieving the goals of the 14th Five-Year Plan. Could you outline the progress in intellectual property development during the first half of this year? Thank you.

Shen Changyu:

Thank you for your question. I will have Mr. Ge Shu, deputy director general of our Patent Bureau, who is responsible for planning, to answer this question.

Ge Shu:

Thank you for your question. This year, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, we have earnestly implemented the principles of the Central Economic Work Conference, the national "two sessions," and the third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee. We have strengthened intellectual property protection, promoted industrial innovation through technological advances, and actively contributed to the development of new quality productive forces, supporting the continuous recovery and growth of the economy. In the first half of 2024, intellectual property development has shown steady progress with five key characteristics.

First, innovation output grew rapidly. In the first half of this year, China granted 554,000 invention patents and 2.46 million registered trademarks, up 28% and 22% year on year, respectively. Additionally, 111 geographical indication (GI) products and certification trademarks received recognition and approval, while 5,365 integrated circuit layout designs were registered.

Second, the conversion and application of innovations accelerated. In the first half of this year, nationwide patent transfers and licenses reached 252,000, a 35.2% year-on-year increase. The registered amount of patent and trademark pledge financing reached 419.9 billion yuan, increasing 57% year on year, benefiting more than 20,000 enterprises — a year-on-year increase of 37%. Universities and research institutions across the country completed an inventory of 850,000 existing invention patents, with overall progress exceeding 95%.

Third, our efforts to protect IPR continued to increase. In the first half of this year, China introduced an action plan on the construction of an IPR protection system and approved the establishment of two national protection centers and two rapid-response IPR service centers, expanding coverage to 28 provincial-level regions. We handled 21,000 administrative patent infringement cases and supported 2,045 mediation organizations in resolving 57,000 IPR disputes. Additionally, 4,144 businesses received approval to use GI special marks.

Fourth, overseas intellectual property applications by Chinese enterprises continued steady growth. In the first half of this year, Chinese applicants filed 30,000 international patent applications through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and 3,637 trademark applications under the Madrid System. Madrid System applications showed particularly strong momentum, increasing 20.3% year on year. According to WIPO) data, Chinese applicants also filed 1,004 industrial design applications through the Hague System, rising 5% year on year.

Fifth, foreign enterprises became more proactive in applying for patent protection in China. In the first half of this year, foreign applicants submitted a total of 78,000 invention patent applications in China, up 13.1% year on year, with Japan (22,000), the United States (20,000), and South Korea (10,000) ranking as the top three in application volume, up 7.3%, 11.4% and 18.2% year on year, respectively.