IP Summit: The Unitary Patent and the EPO

More than 250,000 patents were filed at the European Patent Office (EPO) last year, according to office president Benoît Battistelli, in what was a record year for applications, and the 2013 figures represent a 2.8 percent growth jump on the 2012 filings. Around 93,600 filings came from the EPO’s 38 member states, while the US (64,800), Japan (52,300), China (22,000) and South Korea (16,900 filings) led the way from outside the EU. China contributed 18 percent more to the total applications than last year, while South Korea’s share increased by more than 16 percent.