The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) recently released its statistics on all IP applications filed, examined and tried in 2023. The notable figures thereof are summarized below.
▶ Number of Filings in 2023
The total number of IP applications filed with the KIPO in 2023 was 556,600, an increase of 0.03% from 2022.
|
Patents |
Utility Models |
Designs |
Trademarks |
Total |
Number of Applications Filed (change from 2022) |
243,310 (▲2.4%) |
2,746 (▼11.0%) |
55,335 (▼2.3%) |
255,209 (▼1.5%) |
556,600 (▲0.03%) |
<Number of IP applications filed in 2023>
For patents, about 78.6% of the applications were filed by Korean applicants while 21.4% were filed by foreign entities, with the top seven foreign nationalities being: United States (16,527), Japan (14,192), China (5,455), Germany (3,801), Switzerland (1,766), France (1,524) and the United Kingdom (1,458).
The top five Korean patent filers were Samsung Electronics (12,563, ▲10.0%), LG Electronics (4,182, ▼11.4%), LG Energy Solution (3,741, ▲10.5%), Samsung Display (3,444, ▲9.5%) and Hyundai Motor Company (3,119 ▲4.3%); the top five foreign patent applicants were Qualcomm (1,433, ▲67.2%), Applied Materials (781, ▲14.3%), Japan Semiconductor Energy Laboratory (SEL) (619, ▲1.8%), Tokyo Electron (TEL) (599, ▼15.3%) and Nitto Denko (479, ▼5.1%).
▶ Patent Applications Examined in 2023
In total, 199,979 requests for substantive patent examination were made in 2023, and the KIPO issued 160,912 preliminary rejections and 44,168 final rejections, while allowing 124,947 applications during the same period. The allowance rate of patent cases was 72.9%.
It is worth noting that the allowance rate had increased consistently for seven (7) consecutive years, rising from 60.0% in 2016 to 74.3% in 2022, before the modest decline to 72.9% in 2023.
Year |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
Allowance Rate |
60.0% |
63.1% |
65.0% |
68.8% |
72.2% |
74.0% |
74.3% |
72.9% |
▶ Number of Patent Trial Cases in 2023
The total number of trial petitions brought before the Board of Trials in 2023 was 3,117, an increase of 23.6% from 2022 (2,521). Among the petitions, 2,164 (69.4%) were lodged by domestic entities and 953 (30.6%) by foreign parties; with 1,106 (35.5%) being inter partes cases and 2,011 (64.5%) being ex parte cases. 1,700 cases were appeals from the examiner’s final rejections.
1,701 trial cases appealed from the examiner’s final rejections were reviewed by the Board, of which 4 cases were allowed through mandatory reexamination by the original examiner and 460 cases were remanded to the Examination Bureau for reexamination after review or allowed.
With regard to cancellation petitions, 186 ex parte cancellation petitions were submitted to the Board. Among the 148 decisions rendered by the Board, 48 cases (32.4%) were cancelled.
As for patent invalidation trials, of the 337 decisions heard by the Board, 146 cases (43.3%) were decided in favor of petitioners, while 154 petitions (45.7%) were either rejected or dismissed. The remaining 37 were either withdrawn or invalidated.
▶ Number of Ex Parte Appeal Cases Reviewed by the Intellectual Property High Court and Supreme Court in 2023
Among the 1,272 appealable decisions for ex parte patent trial cases rendered by the Board of Trials in 2023, 101 cases (7.9%) were appealed to the IP High Court.
The IP High Court reviewed 106 ex parte appeal cases during 2023, ruling 18 cases in favor of the plaintiffs (the applicants or patentees) and 77 cases in favor of the KIPO Commissioner. The average amount of time from the date of filing an appeal until the rendering of a decision thereon by the IP High Court was around 7.8 months.
The Supreme Court also reviewed 21 ex parte cases appealed from the IP High Court by the applicants or patentees, ruling 1 case in favor of the appellants (the applicants or patentees) and 20 cases in favor of the KIPO Commissioner.
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