Innovation in Healthcare and Digital Technologies Boosts European Patent Applications by U.S. Companies

MUNICH, March 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. companies filed 48 155 patent applications at the European Patent Office last year, an increase of 0.4% compared to 2022, according to the EPO's Patent Index 2023. The U.S. thus accounted for 24.2% of the total patent applications received by the EPO in 2023. The U.S. consistently ranks as the top filing country at the EPO, and the number of patent applications has increased by +31.3% since 2014. 

"Our latest Patent Index shows that innovation remained vibrant around the world in 2023," said EPO President António Campinos. "The EPO was entrusted with examining more applications than ever before, attesting to both the attractiveness of the European technology market and the high quality of our products and services. Europe's small and medium-sized enterprises are making ever-increasing use of patents, with the share of applications from SMEs at its highest level yet last year. These businesses can also now benefit from the new Unitary Patent, which significantly improves the environment for innovation in Europe, providing a simpler and more cost-effective option for innovators to protect their inventions and bring them to the vast EU market." 

The U.S. growth was driven by increased patent applications in healthcare and digital technologies, making up the five leading U.S technology fields with the most patent applications in Europe: medical technology (6 098 patent applications), computer technology (5 111), digital communication (5 008), pharmaceuticals (3 802), biotechnology (2 751).

Qualcomm was the top applicant at the EPO in 2023 in digital communication and measurement, while RTX Corporation ranked 1^st at the EPO in transport. U.S. firms led in the medical technology field at the EPO, with Medtronic in the top spot, Johnson & Johnson 3^rd, Becton, Dickinson and Company 4^th and Boston Scientific Corporation 5^th.

California was the leading region in the world for European patent applications, ahead of Tokyo (Japan). The state with the second highest number of applications was Massachusetts, followed by New York, and Texas.

Since 1 June 2023, innovators seeking patent protection across Europe can also benefit from the Unitary Patent – a new way to obtain simpler and cheaper patent protection in at present 17 EU member states, in which a European patent can be requested to have unitary legal effect and be enforced or litigated before the new Unified Patent Court. The Unitary Patent system has already proven popular with patent owners: unitary protection was requested for 17.5% of all European patents granted in 2023 (more than 18 300 requests filed) and for 22.3% of those granted in the second half of 2023. Patentees from the 39 EPO member states had the highest uptake rate at 25.8% of the patents granted, followed by those from the U.S. and China (both 10.9%), Republic of Korea (9.7%) and Japan (4.9%). The top Unitary Patent requestors in 2023 were Johnson & Johnson, Siemens, Qualcomm, Samsung and Ericsson.

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SOURCE European Patent Office