China contributes to global intellectual property rights governance

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

By Li Jiabao

In 1994, patent applications via PCT from China were only 98; by 2023, the number increased to nearly 70,000, ranking first in the world for five consecutive years.

Over the past three decades, China has emerged as the world's largest patent filer and is advancing toward becoming an intellectual property powerhouse, becoming a crucial player in the global innovation landscape.

A series of impressive data underscore China's vibrant innovation ecosystem. According to World Intellectual Property Indicators 2024 released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), innovators in China filed around 1.64 million patent applications worldwide in 2023, far exceeding other countries and regions.

In 2024, China moved up one spot to 11th place in the ranking of the world's most innovative economies, remaining the only middle-income economy in the top 30, according to the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2024 released by WIPO.

In recent years, China's green and digital economy has been gaining strong momentum, with cutting-edge technologies continuously fostering new industries, new models, and growth drivers. Sustained scientific and technological innovation continues to empower new quality productive forces.

According to China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), in 2023, the number of invention patents approved in China's core digital economy industries reached 406,000, a year-on-year increase of 21.2 percent, accounting for 44.1 percent of the total number of granted invention patents in the country. As of the end of 2023, China had 243,000 valid green and low-carbon patents.

Ding Minglei, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Science and Technology for Development, said that China's intellectual property protection is becoming increasingly advanced. The country stands at the forefront of global high-tech innovation and patent applications, highlighting its strong innovative vitality and significant influence in global technological innovation, Ding added.

During the recently concluded seventh China International Import Expo (CIIE), many new technologies and products met the public for the first time, demonstrating the vibrant charm of cutting-edge technology. Among the standout exhibits are the world's first intelligent powered shoes that allow wearers to walk at running speed, an airless tire for lunar rovers that can withstand the moon's extremely harsh conditions, and a foldable handheld cleaning machine.

Since its inception in 2018, the CIIE has served as an "accelerator" driving the entry of new products worldwide into the Chinese market. The favorable atmosphere of intellectual property protection and the law-based business environment are key factors that encourage global enterprises to launch their products and invest in China.

During the seventh CIIE, the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Justice established a foreign-related legal service center and a legal service volunteer team, providing global exhibitors with one-stop legal consulting services ranging from intellectual property administrative law enforcement, intellectual property right protection, and dispute resolution.

Ding said that in recent years, China has created a more fair and transparent business environment for foreign investors by improving laws and regulations, and strengthening law enforcement and judicial efficiency. These measures have effectively reduced costs incurred by technology transfer for foreign investors, increased their market profit expectations, and promoted the continuous inflow of high-quality foreign investment.

The number of applications, authorizations and holdings of intellectual patents of foreign companies in China has increased rapidly year by year. By June this year, the numbers of effective invention patents owned by foreign applicants and valid trademark registrations by foreign applications in China had reached 919,000 and 2.135 million respectively. This speaks to foreign investors' full confidence in China's intellectual property protection.

In recent years, China has actively promoted international cooperation in intellectual property rights. It has established stable cooperative relations with over 80 countries and regions, with over 200 intellectual property cooperation agreements currently being implemented.

In addition, the number of Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) partners with China has increased to 33, covering 84 countries, providing strong support for Chinese companies' overseas intellectual property layout.

Intellectual property cooperation within multilateral frameworks such as China-Central Asia cooperation mechanism, China-ASEAN cooperation mechanism, BRICS, China-Mongolia-Russia cooperation mechanism, China-Africa cooperation mechanism, and China-Latin America cooperation mechanism has also made significant progress.

Furthermore, China actively participates in negotiations and discussions at the WIPO Assemblies and professional committees to improve international intellectual property rules.

In May this year, China facilitated the conclusion of the WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge, ending 25 years of negotiations and achieving a historical breakthrough.