IP Outreach Research > IP Use and Awareness
Reference
| Title: | The use of patents and the protection of intellectual property in the Canadian manufacturing industry |
| Author: | Mark Uhrbach [Statistics Canada] |
| Source: | Innovation Analysis Bulletin 10, no. 1: 13-15 |
| Year: | 2008 |
Details
| Subject/Type: | IP Protection |
| Focus: | Patents |
| Country/Territory: | Canada |
| Objective: | To examine the use of patents by Canadian manufacturing plants. |
| Sample: | 6.143 CEOs or senior managers in the manufacturing industry |
| Methodology: | Mail questionnaire |
Main Findings
During the 2002 to 2004 period, 76.4% of Canadian manufacturing plants used some method to protect their intellectual property (IP). Strategic methods of protecting IP proved most popular among Canadian manufacturers: 42.4% used lead-time advantage over competitors, 40.4% used secrecy, and 33.8% used complexity of design. 21.7% reported using patents, and 12.2% reported having applied for a new patent between 2002 and 2004.
The larger a manufacturing plant, the more likely it is to use patents as a protection mechanism for its IP: 37.4% of large plants, 29.4% of medium-sized plants, and just 17.9% of small plants reported using patents. However, this does not mean that smaller plants do not protect their IP: about 60% of large, medium-sized and also small plants used at least one strategic method of IP protection.
Innovators are more likely to use patents than non-innovators: over one in four innovative plants (27.9%) used patents, while only one in ten non-innovative plants (10.2%) did so. Among different manufacturing subsectors, patent use varies considerably: its level was highest in "computer and electronic product manufacturing", "electrical equipment, appliance and component manufacturing" and "plastics and rubber products manufacturing"; its level was lowest in "printing and related support activities" and "wood product manufacturing".
[Date Added: Aug 18, 2008 ]