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Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
Regulations under the PCT (as in force from July 1, 2022)
The Patent Cooperation Treaty makes it possible to seek patent protection for an invention simultaneously in each of a large number of countries by filing an "international" patent application. Such an application may be filed by anyone who is a national or a resident of a Contracting State.
Publication year: 2022
Patent Cooperation Treaty Yearly Review – 2022
The International Patent System
Comprehensive facts, figures and analysis of the international patent system. Special theme: How the COVID-19 crisis affected PCT application filings
Patent Landscape Report - Hydrogen fuel cells in transportation
Over the next decade, transforming the transportation sector to put it on a Net Zero pathway will require a combination of technological innovation, government and corporate decision-making, and adapted customer behavior. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by transportation, a sector responsible for almost 24 percent of direct carbon dioxide emissions from fuel combustion is crucial. This WIPO Patent Landscape Report provides early observations on patenting activity together with complementary information from online news, press releases and corporate financial reporting in the field of hydrogen fuel cells in transportation.
Patent Cooperation Treaty Yearly Review 2023 - Executive Summary
This executive brief identifies the key trends in the use of the WIPO-administered Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and provides a summary of the statistics reported in the PCT Yearly Review 2023.
Publication year: 2023
Guide to the International Patent Classification (2022)
This Guide provides information on the objectives, history and reform of the International Patent Classification (IPC) as well as assistance in the use of the IPC.
COVID-19-related vaccines and therapeutics
Preliminary insights on related patenting activity during the pandemic
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic there have been remarkable research and innovation efforts to fight the SARS-COV-2 virus and the related disease. This patent landscape report provides early observations on the patenting activity which took place in the field of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics, and compares results with clinical trial data for related candidate vaccines and drugs.
WIPO IP Facts and Figures 2022
An overview of intellectual property activity based on the latest available year of complete statistics.
World Intellectual Property Indicators 2023
This authoritative report analyzes IP activity around the globe. Drawing on 2022 filing, registration and in force statistics from national and regional IP offices, it covers patents, utility models, trademarks, industrial designs, microorganisms, plant variety protection and geographical indications. The report also draws on survey data and industry sources to give a picture of activity in the creative economy.
The Global Gender Gap in Innovation and Creativity: An International Comparison of the Gender Gap in Global Patenting over Two Decades
WIPO Development Studies
This report analyzes women's participation in international patent applications between 1999 and 2020 and finds that women are involved in only 23% of all applications, representing 13% of all inventors listed. Women's participation in patenting varies across regions, sectors, and industries, with higher representation in biotechnology, food chemistry, and pharmaceuticals, and lower in mechanical engineering. Women inventors are more prevalent in academia than in the private sector, and typically work in mostly-male teams or alone. Achieving gender parity will require significant effort, with an estimated target year of 2061 based on current trends.
COVID-19, Innovative Firms and Resilience
Economic Research Working Paper No. 73
This paper explores the empirical association between patents and various indicators of firm resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic with worldwide firm-level data from manufacturing industries. The study shows that patent-intensive firms have a reduced probability of exit, in particular if they are larger and if engaging with complementary investments in R&D and other intangibles. Additional estimates show that firm productivity has been an important transmission channel. Taken together, the results presented in the paper offer evidence-based findings pointing to patents as an important potential factor contributing to firm resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Policy insights are discussed.