Industrial Designs Highlights

A record number of industrial design applications were filed globally in 2023

In 2023, about 1.19 million industrial design applications were filed worldwide, reflecting a 4% increase on 2022 figures (figure 3.1). About 75% of offices worldwide reported higher filing activity in 2023 compared to the previous year. Notably, the office of China received about 26,600 more applications than in 2022. India and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) also saw a substantial increase in applications filed, with 5,611 and 4,142 more, respectively.

Statistics based on the number of designs contained in industrial design applications – known as application design counts – improve worldwide comparability by harmonizing data between offices that allow several designs to be contained within a single application and those that allow only one. 

About 1.52 million designs were contained in applications filed worldwide in 2023, corresponding to a 2.8% increase on 2022 (figure 3.2). The total number of designs contained within both resident and non-resident applications grew by 1.8% and 7.4%, respectively. The global rise in resident activity was primarily attributed to the increased filing activity in China, which saw an additional 26,291 design counts in 2023. Italy (+7,987), the United Kingdom (UK) (+7,070) and India (+5,286) also contributed strongly to this growth. The EUIPO (+7,262), the UK (+5,453) and the United States of America (US) (+4,124) saw the sharpest growth in non-resident filing activity among all offices.

The Hague System filing route accounted for approximately one-third (33.6%) of global non-resident filing activity in 2023. The remaining two-thirds of designs in non-resident applications were filed directly at offices. In 2023, the Hague System provided coverage for 96 countries worldwide.

The offices of Indonesia and India saw sharp growth in filings in 2023

In 2023, the office of China received the highest number of designs in applications filed, with a total of 826,086. This accounted for more than half (54.2%) of the global activity. China was followed by the EUIPO (116,884), the UK (81,543), the US (60,022) and the Republic of Korea (59,454) (figure 3.3).

The top 20 offices collectively accounted for 94.6% of global application design count activity in 2023. Among them, 13 reported an increase in application design count, with seven experiencing double-digit growth. The offices which saw the strongest growth were Spain (+33%), Indonesia (+30.1%), Italy (+25.3%) and India (+24.9%). Conversely, seven offices experienced declines in application design count, with the most substantial ones occurring at the offices of Türkiye (–30.9%) and Germany (–13.4%). 

In 2023, nine of the top 20 offices reported an increase in the number of designs contained in both resident and non-resident applications. Only France, Germany and Türkiye experienced a decline in design count for resident and non-resident filing activity. Italy, the Russian Federation, Spain and Switzerland saw growth only in resident design count, while the Islamic Republic of Iran, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the US experienced an increase solely in non-resident design count.

Among selected offices located in low- and middle-income economies beyond the top 20 offices, growth was particularly high in Pakistan (+52.1%), the Eurasian Patent Office (EAPO) (+33.3%) and Ukraine (+25%) (figure C12). Conversely, Mongolia (–41.6%), the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) (–17.3%) and Bangladesh (–15%) experienced steep declines in design count.

Designs contained in resident applications accounted for 82% of global design count in 2023. This high share at the global level is primarily due to the substantial resident design share at the office of China, which stood at 97.3% in 2023. Resident design counts made up most of the filing activity at 15 of the top 20 offices (figure C9). However, resident activity constituted less than one-third of the total at the offices of Canada (8.7%), Switzerland (29.2%), Australia (30.1%) and the US (32.7%).

In 2023, Asia accounted for 69% of all designs in applications filed worldwide (figure 3.4). Europe (23.5%) and Northern America (4.5%) followed. The combined share for Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and Oceania was 3% in 2023, down from 3.4% a decade ago. Over the 2013–2023 period, Northern America (+5.3%) and Asia (+2%) saw the sharpest average annual increases in design count among all geographical regions. 

Industrial design applications filed since 1883

Between 1883 and the early 1950s, the offices of Japan and the US averaged a similar number of applications, rarely exceeding 10,000. The office of Japan received the highest number of applications per year from the 1950s thru to the late 1990s, reaching approximately 50,000 annual filings at its peak. The office of China, which received 640 applications when it first began receiving applications in 1985, has seen an unprecedented rate of growth, peaking at 822,849 applications filed in 2023. The office of the US moved ahead of Japan in 2012 and of the Republic of Korea in 2023 to become the second largest globally. The office of the Republic of Korea moved down from second place, which it has held since 2004, to third in 2023. The EUIPO began receiving applications in 2003 and moved up to fourth position in 2019. Among these top five offices, the EUIPO is the only one to have a multiple design system. On average, an application filed at the EUIPO contained 3.1 designs in 2023.

Note: EUIPO is the European Union Intellectual Property Office.

Source: WIPO Statistics Database, August 2024.

Designs in applications filed abroad worldwide grew by 7.4% in 2023

Applications received by offices from resident and non-resident applicants are referred to as office data, whereas applications filed by applicants at their home office(s) (resident applications) or at foreign offices (applications abroad) are referred to as origin data. Industrial design statistics based on office data provide information on the destination of industrial design activity, whereas statistics based on the origin of residence of the first named applicant complement the picture by providing information on the source of industrial design activity.

With 882,807 designs in applications filed, applicants residing in China were the most active in the world in 2023. They were followed by applicants from the US (69,076), Germany (64,986), Italy (60,486) and the Republic of Korea (60,120). Together, these top five origins were responsible for almost three-quarters (74.6%) of the global design count activity in 2023. 

The filing activity of 13 of the top 20 origins increased in 2023, with seven experiencing double-digit growth. The sharpest increases came from applicants from Indonesia (+37.3%), India (+36.4%) and the Russian Federation (+31.6%). In contrast, applicants from Türkiye (–32%), Poland (–16.9%) and the Kingdom of the Netherlands (–10.9%) saw the steepest drops. Among the top five origins, Italy (+15.7%), China (+5%) and the US (+2.6%) experienced growth, while Germany (–7.6%) and the Republic of Korea (–3.4%) saw a decline.

Half of the top 20 origins were from Europe, seven from Asia and one each from LAC, Northern America and Oceania. In terms of income group, 14 were high-income economies, five upper middle-income and one lower middle-income.

Designs in applications filed abroad worldwide grew by 7.4% in 2023, reaching 274,200. Applicants from China had the highest number of designs in applications filed abroad, with 78,703. They were followed by applicants from the US (49,470), Germany (21,553), Switzerland (19,596) and Japan (13,758) (figure 3.5).

The top 20 origins in application design count abroad accounted for 91.5% of global activity. Within these origins, India (+294.1%), Canada (+30.1%), China (+24.2%) and Belgium (+20.7%) saw the sharpest increases compared to 2022. In contrast, the Kingdom of the Netherlands (–23%), Sweden (–17.8%) and Italy (–15.3%) experienced the steepest falls.

Australia, Brazil and Guinea had resident industrial design filing activity consistent with their development level

Adjusting resident filing activity according to gross domestic product (GDP) and population helps when comparing the intensity of resident industrial design filing across origins.

In 2023, China had the highest resident design count per USD 100 billion of GDP, with a ratio of 2,575 (figure 3.6). China was followed by the Republic of Korea (1,954), Türkiye (1,786), Italy (1,646) and Morocco (1,341). In contrast, the US (80), Indonesia (123) and the Russian Federation (130) had notably lower ratios. Compared to 2013, the ratios for 2023 increased notably for the UK (+621), Italy (+239) and Morocco (+225) while the Republic of Korea (–1,244) and China (–1,109) saw a marked drop.

When the resident design count is compared to population, the Republic of Korea topped the list with 988 resident design counts per million population in 2023. It was followed by Italy (867), Türkiye (615), China (570) and the UK (521). Over the past decade, the UK (+351) and Italy (+203) saw substantial increases in their respective ratios.

Plotting the resident application design count per capita against GDP per capita makes it possible to visualize an economy’s industrial design output relative to its development level (see figure C28, World IP Indicators 2024). Origins whose points lie above the sloping fitted line – which reflects the positive correlation between the two variables – exhibit intense industrial design activity for their level of development. Over the 2019–2023 period, Australia, Brazil, Guinea and India were situated close to that line, indicating that their resident industrial design activity was consistent with their development level. 

Among others, China, Madagascar, Mongolia, Morocco, Türkiye and the Republic of Korea had a high degree of industrial design activity with respect to their GDP. In contrast, industrial design activity for economies such as Chile, Costa Rica and the United Arab Emirates was low in comparison to their development level.

The top five industry sectors accounted for the bulk of filing activity worldwide

Grouping the 32 Locarno classes into 12 industry sectors serves to highlight the most important industry sectors for designs contained within industrial design applications filed.

In 2023, the sectors with the largest shares of the world total were textiles and accessories (17.3%), furniture and household goods (16.9%), tools and machines (11%), electricity and lighting (9.2%) and ICT and audiovisual (8.8%). Together, these five sectors accounted for 63.2% of all classes recorded globally.

All top 10 offices for which data were available had between 38% and 80% of total classes concentrated in just three sectors in 2023, although the specific top sectors varied between offices (figure 3.7). Textiles and accessories made up a substantial share of the total at the offices of Spain (55.7%), Germany (27%) and the Republic of Korea (21%). The furniture and household goods sector accounted for a high proportion of the total at the offices of the Islamic Republic of Iran (23.9%), Türkiye (22.2%) and Germany (20.7%).

In 2023, the respective top three sectors for each of the top 10 origins accounted for over 44% of their total application design count. Notably, textiles and accessories was among the top three sectors for every top 10 origin, followed by furniture and household goods for eight origins and advertising for four.

Applications registered worldwide dropped for a second consecutive year

In 2023, approximately 944,600 industrial design applications were registered globally, marking a 7% decrease from 2022. Although this second consecutive drop brings the number of registrations down to a level below that of 2020, the number of applications registered worldwide has more than doubled since 2009, mainly due to a considerable increase in registrations issued by the office of China.

About 1.26 million designs were contained in applications registered worldwide in 2023, marking a 4.6% decrease from the previous year. The office of China accounted for half (51.1%) of all designs in applications registered worldwide, while the top 20 offices combined accounted for 94.7% of the total. Half of the top 20 offices recorded annual growth, including sharp increases at the offices of Indonesia (+139.8%), India (+37%), Spain (+31.5%) and Italy (+30.9%). In contrast, the offices of Germany (–25.1%), Brazil (–15.4%), China (–11%) and the Republic of Korea (–9.3%) saw steep declines in registration design count (figure C13).

Active registrations worldwide grew by 10.5% in 2023

Industrial design rights generally last for up to 15 years from the date an application is filed, although they last up to 25 years in most European countries and up to 10 years in China.

In 2023, there were an estimated 6.08 million active industrial design registrations worldwide. This represents a 10.5% increase from 2022. China accounted for most (53.2%) of the active industrial design registrations in 2023.

Active registrations in China grew by 14.2% compared to 2022, reaching 3.23 million. China was followed by the US (424,718), the Republic of Korea (414,117), the EUIPO (329,358) and the UK (309,554). Combined, the top 20 offices accounted for nearly 95% of active industrial design registrations globally.

Figure C31 in World IP Indicators 2024 shows the distribution of 2.31 million active industrial design registrations at 81 offices in 2023, according to the year in which they were registered. Nearly a quarter of the industrial design applications registered in 2005 remained valid in 2023. The majority of applications registered in 2014 were still active in 2023, and more than 80% of those registered in 2019 continued to be in force in 2023.

The average age of active industrial design registrations varied widely across offices. For example, in 2023, the average age of all active industrial design registrations in Spain was 10.7 years, while in the UK it was only 2.8 years.

The EUIPO registered more than 98% of applications processed in 2023

An industrial design office examines applications and decides whether to register them. Examination processes vary between offices, making inter-office comparison difficult. Every effort has been made to compile examination outcome data based on common definitions and concepts.

The distribution of examination outcomes varies substantially across offices. Among the top five offices in registration design count worldwide, the EUIPO registered the largest proportion of processed applications in 2023, with 98.3% of the total. The offices of China, Hong Kong SAR (98.7%) and Australia (98.1%) also had very large proportions of registered applications.

In contrast, the share of applications rejected was particularly high at the offices of Viet Nam (36.5%), the US (26.5%), the Republic of Korea (11.6%) and Türkiye (11.3%). Applications withdrawn or abandoned constituted a high share of total applications processed in Thailand (41.2%), Mexico (27.4%) and the US (19.4%).

On average, the office of Argentina processed applications in less than four days

In general, for an industrial design to be eligible for protection, it typically needs to meet criteria such as being new, original and of an individual character. However, examination procedures vary widely between offices. At some offices, no search is made and no examination as to substance is carried out prior to registration. At other offices, a substantive examination is conducted, whereby the design is checked against designs on the register for novelty and/or originality. Here, all potentially pending applications are taken to be industrial design applications, at any stage in the process, awaiting a final decision by an office.

Among offices that reported potentially pending application data in 2023, the US had the largest number, with 76,811. The Republic of Korea and India followed with 20,873 and 12,513, respectively. The EUIPO and the UK, which ranked as the second and third largest offices in terms of application design count for 2023, had much smaller numbers of potentially pending applications, with 6,314 and 2,654, respectively. The offices of France (442) and Türkiye (953) also had a relatively low number of potentially pending applications, in comparison to their level of filing activity.

On average, in 2023, an industrial design application was processed in under four days following its filing at the office of Argentina and at the EUIPO. In contrast, the processing time was between 600 and 800 days at the offices of Thailand, the US and Viet Nam. The average time between a first office action and a final office decision was less than one day at the EUIPO and at the office of Türkiye. However, in Thailand, a final office decision was made 402 days after a first office action, on average.