Country leads way in patent applications

China maintained its position as the world leader in annual patent applications for the fourth consecutive year in 2014, with 928,000 invention patent applications filed, a 12.5 percent year-on-year increase, the State Intellectual Property Office of China announced on Thursday.

Of the applications filed, 233,000 were granted, taking the total number of valid invention patents authorized by the office to nearly 1.2 million, according to a report released by the office.

The report also found that Chinese companies are paying more attention to international patents, with a rising awareness of their IP edge in global competition. The country received 26,000 international patent applications from domestic entities, according to the Patent Cooperation Treaty in 2014, a 14.2 percent increase from 2013.