In 2013, patent and trademark applications filed with TIPO totaled 83,211 (-2.19%) and 74,031 (-0.44%) respectively, as compared to those of the preceding year. This represents the first-ever downward incline in the headway TIPO has made since the financial tsunami.
Design Filings Grew, Despite Decreased Invention and Utility Model Applications: Figure 1 Trends in Patent Application
Decline in Domestic Invention Applications:
Figure 2 Patent Applications by ROC Nationals and Non-Nationals
Proactive Design Patent Portfolios of Japan, the U.S. and Republic of Korea:
Among top three patent filing countries, Japan (14,013), taking the lead for many years with continuous increase, topped the chart and outstripped those on the list. The U.S. (8,432) came second with a steady growth and the Republic of Korea (2,336) reclaimed its third position by outnumbering mainland China. As to growth rate, invention applications by Japan (12,419, -1.80%) and the U.S. (7,475, -1.12%) slipped slightly whereas the Republic of Korea (1,997, +13.72%) experienced the fastest growth. Mainland China (503), the frequent topper in utility model, suffered a slightly larger drop of 8.71%. In design applications, Japan (1,428, +16.19%), the U.S. (795, +46.41%) and the Republic of Korea (321, +181.58%) dominated the chart thanks to their adopting new measures of the amended Patent Act and their proactive portfolios (Table 1).
Table 1 Top 10 Patent Filing Countries: 2012-2013
TIPO Making a Significant Breakthrough in Patent Examination:
Thanks to its fast-track measures and addition of manpower,TIPO in 2013 was able to conclude with an outstanding performance in patent examination, with examination number hitting an all-time high. The number of first office actions (64,958) issued in 2013 witnessed a 27.69% increase over the preceding year (Figure 3).
Figure 3 Disposal of Invention Patent Examination
Compared to 2012, the number of rendered decisions (67,346) was up 28.46%, exceeding that of substantive examination requests (43,395) (Figure 4). The first office pendency (7.08 months shorter than in 2012) for invention applications came to a five-year low, averaging 32.59 months; overall pendency averaged 41.33 months, also cut short by 4.81 months than the year before. In monthly average, pendency in December 2013 came down to 38.12 months. Because of marked examination efficacy, the number of pending invention applications has been gradually lowered from the peak (160,000) in 2011 to less than 130,000 (128,902), the lowest in five years (Figure 4).
Figure 4 Trends in Concluded Examination
Japan and U.S. Trademark Registration Applications Are in Decline:
In trademark, registration applications (by case) filed with TIPO in 2013 totaled 74,031, representing a slight 0.44% decrease than in the preceding year (Figure 5).
Figure 5 Trends in Trademark Applications
Figure 6 Top 10 Trademark Filing Countries (By Case)
Conclusion:
With the new Trademark Act and Patent Act now fully in place, trademark holders and patentees will be better protected. In retrospect, patent and trademark applications slumped or remained relatively unchanged in 2013 except for design applications, which soared due to expanded scopes of subject matter resulting in more portfolios by foreigners. The said slump, on the other hand, may have been caused by Taiwan’s recent economic downturn and industrial transformation, reflecting in lukewarm applications or shifting trends in patent portfolios. However, we are pleased to see that the Republic of Korea, United Kingdom and Singapore experienced the fastest growth in Taiwan. Also, we are glad to see the TIPO’s marked examination efficacy. The number of pending invention applications has been gradually lowered in 2013.
Source: TIPO Report dated March 14, 2014
(http://www.tipo.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=512852&ctNode=6687&mp=2)
Delivered by: JAW-HWA INTERNATIONAL PATENT & TRADEMARK & LAWOFFICES
TAIPEI, TAIWAN
http://www.jaw-hwa.com.tw
