Decade of innovation sees invention patents soar

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The rapid growth of patents and trademarks in the past decade demonstrates the vitality of the national innovation, Hu Wenhui, deputy head of the National Intellectual Property Administration told a news conference on Sunday.

From 2012 to September, the administration granted 3.95 million patents, with an average annual increase each year of 13.8 percent, bringing the number of valid patents to over 4.08 million.

During the same period, more than 35.56 million trademarks were registered, an increase of an average of 25.5 percent per year, he said.

"Those figures mean that IPR has developed quickly in the past 10 years, playing an important role in stimulating creativity and energizing innovators," he added.

Ge Shu, head of the administration's strategic planning department, praised the achievements. "The growth of patents has benefited from the country's stronger IPR protection and better application in recent years, and further consolidated the status of our innovation power around the world."

While the creation and storage of high-value patents have improved, the vitality of businesses has also been promoted, he said.

As of July, companies nationwide owned more than 2.08 million valid patents, of which, about 64 percent were in high-tech companies, according to Ge.

He said that patents for digital technology have grown fast in the past few years, adding that the top three areas for digital patents have been computers, measurements and communication.

"We'll further improve the quality of patents and accelerate the review time of IPR-related applications to fully stimulate innovation in all walks of life and promote the high-quality development of society and the economy," he added.

As the country has stepped up efforts to create and protect IPR, it has also given people easier access to IPR-related services.

"Patent application and trademark registration can be done online, and we've also established stations nationwide to provide more convenience to people in handling IPR-related affairs," said Wang Peizhang, head of the NIPA's public service department.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012, government agencies, including the administration, have attached great importance to IPR-related work, with various measures taken in IPR protection.

The awarding of punitive damages to those who have their IPR infringed has been highlighted in the Civil Code, a fundamental national law for regulating civil activities, and punishments for IPR violators have become harsher under the revised Criminal Law.

China has amended several laws related to IPR, such as Patent Law, Trademark Law and Copyright Law, and has issued plans to promote IPR development.