EPO Sees Record Patent Filings, Grants

The European Patent Office has announced that it reached new records in 2012 for patent filings and patents granted, according to preliminary figures. The United States remained at top, but growth was fastest in Asia, while European filings remained stable, it said.

The number of patent filings in 2012 was 258,000, a 5.7 percent increase over the previous year, and patents granted were 65,700, an increase of 5.8 percent.

“This new peak in European patent filings for the third year in a row shows that companies from Europe and around the world are continuing to seek protection for their inventions, and that Europe remains an attractive market for new technologies,” said EPO President Benoît Battistelli. “This growth is part of a consistent, long-term trend, and is clear evidence of the confidence of industry in the value of European patents.”

About two-thirds of applications come from outside Europe. The top five positions in 2012 were again the US (63,777 filings or 24.7% overall), Japan (19.9%), Germany (13.4%), China (7.3%) and Korea (5.5%).

The EPO will publish detailed figures on trends in individual countries and industrial sectors as well as the ranking of companies on 14 March 2013.

The EPO press release is available here.