On January 15, 2025, the China State Council Information Office held a press conference with China’s National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) detailing statistics of 2024. Per Hu Wenhui, deputy director of the CNIPA, in 2024, a total of 1.045 million invention patents were authorized, a year-on-year increase of 13.5%. 67,000 patent reexaminations and invalidation cases were closed. The examination cycle of invention patents was reduced to 15.5 months. 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. More detailed data should be released before the end of the month including utility model authorizations.

Excerpts from the press conference follow. The full transcript is available here via social media (Chinese only).

Hu Wenhui: 

By the end of 2024, my country will have 4.756 million valid invention patents, becoming the first country in the world to exceed 4 million. my country will have 14 high-value invention patents per 10,000 people, completing the expected goals of the country’s 14th Five-Year Plan ahead of schedule.

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 opposition cases were concluded. The average review period for trademark registration remained stable at 4 months, and the average review period for opposition review cases was further shortened. The qualification rate of various trademark services 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%.

As of the end of 2024, the number of valid trademark registrations in my country was 47.62 million.

A total of 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 business entities were approved to use geographical indication special marks.

As of the end of 2024, my country has recognized a total of 2,544 geographical indication products, approved 7,402 registrations of geographical indications as collective trademarks and certification trademarks, the total number of operators of geographical indication special marks is nearly 33,000, and the direct output value of geographical indication products exceeds 960 billion yuan, with stable growth for many consecutive years.

A total of 11,000 integrated circuit layout design registrations and certificates were issued throughout the year.

As of the end of 2024, my country had issued a total of 83,000 integrated circuit layout-design certificates.

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The number of domestic high-value invention patents reached 1.978 million, an increase of 18.8% year-on-year, and the number of invention patents belonging to strategic emerging industries reached 1.349 million, an increase of 15.7% year-on-year.

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Among China’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 innovative entities, an increase of more than 6,700 from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan. More domestic innovative entities pay more attention to using intellectual property rights to open up international markets and continuously improve their international competitiveness.

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The Draft Amendment to the Regulations on the Protection of Integrated Circuit Layout Designs mainly revised three aspects:

First, the registration and confirmation procedures for integrated circuit layout designs have been improved to strengthen the protection of intellectual property rights at the source. The application documents submitted by the applicant are required to clearly display and identify the protected content of the layout design, and failure to meet this requirement will be used as grounds for rejection and revocation. Provisions for initiating revocation procedures upon application have been added to better balance the rights and interests of all parties.

Second, we will strengthen the protection of exclusive rights for integrated circuit layout designs and effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of right holders. It is clarified that the scope of exclusive rights protection is based on the submitted copies and drawings, and the originality statement of layout designs is used to explain the copies and drawings. New provisions on the principle of good faith are added, and a punitive compensation system for serious intentional infringements is introduced. Relevant provisions on pre-litigation evidence preservation are added to more effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of right holders and reduce the cost of rights protection.

Third, promote the implementation and application of layout designs and boost the development of new quality productivity. New regulations on job creation rewards are added, stipulating that legal persons or non-legal persons should reward natural persons who create layout designs after the layout design is registered. After the layout design is implemented, the natural persons who create the layout design should be given reasonable remuneration based on the scope of its promotion and application and the economic benefits obtained. Improve the relevant regulations on the exercise of rights and transfer, licensing and pledge of exclusive rights by co-owners of layout designs to more fully stimulate enthusiasm for innovation and creation.