The State Council Information Office held a press conference at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, January 15, 2025, inviting Hu Wenhui, Deputy Director of the National Intellectual Property Administration, Guo Wen, Director of the Intellectual Property Protection Department of the National Intellectual Property Administration, Wang Peizhang, Director of the Intellectual Property Application Promotion Department of the National Intellectual Property Administration, and Liang Xinxin, Director of the Strategic Planning Department of the National Intellectual Property Administration, to introduce the progress of intellectual property work in 2024 and answer questions from reporters. At the meeting, Hu Wenhui, Deputy Director of the National Intellectual Property Administration, introduced that in 2024, the national intellectual property system successfully completed various annual goals and tasks, and the construction of an intellectual property power took new and solid steps.

In terms of patents, a total of 1.045 million invention patents were authorized throughout the year, an increase of 13.5% year-on-year. 67,000 patent reexaminations and invalidation cases were closed. The examination period of invention patents was reduced to 15.5 months, and the accuracy rate of case closure was increased to 95.2%. 75,000 PCT international patent applications were accepted. Chinese applicants submitted 4,868 international design applications through the Hague Agreement, a year-on-year increase of 29.5%, ranking first in the world. By the end of 2024, the number of valid domestic invention patents in my country reached 4.756 million, making it the first country in the world to exceed 4 million. The number of high-value invention patents per 10,000 people in my country reached 14, completing the expected goals of the country's "14th Five-Year Plan" ahead of schedule.

In terms of trademarks, 4.781 million trademarks were registered throughout the year, a year-on-year increase of 9.1%. 383,000 trademark review cases and 103,000 objection cases were concluded. The average review period for trademark registrations remained stable at 4 months, and the average review period for objection review cases was further compressed, and the qualification rate of various trademark businesses remained above 97%. 7,039 Madrid trademark international registration applications were received from Chinese applicants throughout the year, a year-on-year increase of 13.6%. By the end of 2024, the number of valid domestic trademark registrations in my country was 47.62 million.

In terms of geographical indications, 36 geographical indication products were recognized throughout the year, 125 geographical indications were approved for registration as collective trademarks and certification trademarks, and 8,680 geographical indication special mark operators were approved. By the end of 2024, my country has cumulatively recognized 2,544 geographical indication products, approved 7,402 geographical indications as collective trademarks and certification trademarks, and the total number of geographical indication special mark operators is nearly 33,000. The direct output value of geographical indication products exceeds 960 billion yuan, with steady growth for many consecutive years.

In terms of integrated circuit layout design, 11,000 integrated circuit layout design registrations and certificates were issued throughout the year. By the end of 2024, my country has issued a total of 83,000 integrated circuit layout design certificates.

In terms of intellectual property protection, the construction of the second batch of 15 national intellectual property protection demonstration zones has been launched. Six national intellectual property protection centers and seven rapid rights protection centers have been newly built, totaling 124, and more than 193,000 innovative entities have been registered. 33 overseas intellectual property dispute response guidance sub-centers have been newly built, totaling 80. The whole system handled a total of 72,000 administrative cases of patent infringement disputes throughout the year, and guided the intellectual property dispute mediation organizations to accept nearly 140,000 mediation cases. The social satisfaction with intellectual property protection has increased to 82.36 points, setting a new record.

In terms of intellectual property application, the number of patent transfer license filings reached 613,000 times throughout the year, an increase of 29.9% year-on-year. Among them, the number of patent transfer license filings by universities and research institutions reached 76,000 times, an increase of 39.1% year-on-year. From January to November, the total import and export volume of intellectual property royalties reached 356.41 billion yuan, an increase of 6.6% year-on-year. In 2023, the added value of my country's patent-intensive industries will reach 16.87 trillion yuan, accounting for 13.04% of GDP, and the planning goals of intellectual property rights in the "14th Five-Year Plan" will be completed ahead of schedule.

Hu Wenhui said that the main characteristics reflected by the data include the following aspects: First, the innovation and creativity of the whole society continues to burst out. By the end of 2024, the number of valid invention patents and valid trademark registrations in my country will increase by 16.3% and 8.1% year-on-year respectively. Among them, the number of domestic high-value invention patents reached 1.978 million, an increase of 18.8% year-on-year, and the number of effective invention patents belonging to strategic emerging industries reached 1.349 million, an increase of 15.7% year-on-year. The continuous emergence of innovative achievements has provided strong support for the cultivation and development of new quality productivity.

Second, the status of enterprises as innovation subjects continues to strengthen. By the end of 2024, there will be 497,000 enterprises in my country with valid invention patents, an increase of 69,000 over the same period last year; there will be 3.506 million valid invention patents, accounting for 73.7% of the total number of domestic valid invention patents. The industrialization rate of effective invention patents of domestic enterprises has maintained steady growth for five consecutive years. The survey shows that the industrialization rate of invention patents of enterprises will reach 53.3% in 2024, and the transformation of innovative achievements into real productivity will be accelerated.

Third, overseas applications for intellectual property rights are more active. In 2024, the number of PCT international patent applications, Hague system design applications, and Madrid trademark international registration applications submitted by Chinese applicants will all be among the best in the world. Among them, the number of PCT international patent applications submitted by Chinese applicants has increased steadily compared with the previous year, and the number of Hague system design applications and Madrid trademark international registration applications has achieved double-digit growth year-on-year. Among my country's high-value invention patents, 130,000 have been authorized overseas at the same time, nearly doubling from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan, involving 16,000 innovation entities, an increase of more than 6,700 from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan. More domestic innovation entities pay more attention to using intellectual property rights to open up international markets and continuously improve their international competitiveness.