Economy
India ranks among top 10 globally for patents, trademarks, industrial designs
Summary
- Textiles, tools and machines, and health and cosmetics emerged as the leading industries for design applications.
New Delhi: India now ranks among the top 10 countries globally in the number of patents, trademarks and industrial design applications, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) 2024 report on IP trends.
The World Intellectual Property Indicators report underscores India’s rapid progress in the IP landscape.
India recorded the fastest growth among the top 20 origins in patent applications, with a 15.7% increase in 2023, marking its fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth in this area, the commerce ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
With 64,480 patent applications, India now ranks sixth worldwide, crossing a notable threshold as Indian filings accounted for over half the total (55.2%) for the first time, it said.
This upward trend in patent applications is accompanied by an impressive 149.4% surge in granted patents compared with the previous year, indicating rapid development within India's IP infrastructure.
Industrial design applications have also risen by a remarkable 36.4%, attributed to a heightened focus on the manufacturing and creative sectors.
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Leading industries
Textiles, tools and machines, and health and cosmetics emerged as the leading industries, representing nearly half of all design applications, demonstrating India’s growing emphasis on both functional and aesthetic innovation in product development.
Trademark filings, another indicator of the nation’s burgeoning IP ecosystem, saw a 6.1% increase in 2023, positioning India fourth globally, the ministry said.
Almost 90% of trademark applications were filed by domestic entities, with health (21.9%), agriculture (15.3%) and clothing (12.8%) leading the charge. India’s trademark office now holds the second-largest number of active registrations globally, with over 3.2 million trademarks currently in force, it said.
WIPO reported a 2.7% increase in patent filings worldwide in 2023, totaling 3.55 million applications.
China, the US, Japan, South Korea and India contributed the most to this growth, as countries emphasized domestic innovation.
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India has seen a significant shift in the proportion of resident versus non-resident patent filings over the last decade, reflecting a substantial transformation in its intellectual property (IP) environment.
As per the report, in 2013 resident filings represented only 24.8% of total patent applications.
By 2023, however, this distribution reversed, with resident filings climbing to 55.2%. This shift highlights the increasing prominence of domestic innovation and intellectual property activities, fuelled by various government initiatives such as the 'Make in India' programme, which has encouraged local manufacturing and innovation.
The rise in resident filings signifies the strengthening of India’s research and development capabilities and a growing recognition of the value of IP protection.
