1. Introduction of Patent Box is “Urgent vs. Too Early”

The position that the patent box is necessary for activation of business R&D investment stands against the position that close examination is necessary, as it has an adverse effect on securing tax revenues. The patent box is a system for applying a special corporate tax rate which is lower than the general corporate tax rate when a business creates profits by utilizing an intellectual property right such as a patent. Some European countries lower tax rates by a minimum of 0% to a maximum of 15%. The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry stressed that the patent box system enhances business R&D activity and commercialization by raising the after-tax rate of return for profits generated as a result of business R&D activity.

2. KIPO to pay a maximum of 4 million won reward money for reporting “fake”

Recently, as the distribution of counterfeit goods is made discretely through a network of individual distributers and the tricks are getting more intelligent, the KIPO announced that it would amend and enforce the provision for reward money so as to pay a maximum of 4 million won for prosecution of inveterate fakers. A reward of 200,000 won or more will be paid for reporting a small-scale distributor of counterfeit goods worth an original value of 10 million won or more, and maximum of 4 million won will be paid for reporting a large-scale faker and distributor of counterfeit goods worth an original value of 5 billion won or more. The limit of payment is 5 cases or 10 million won per person per year.

3. Number of domestic patent applications exceeded 200,000 last year

The total number of applications for intellectual property rights such as domestic patents, utility models, trademarks and designs was 430,164 in 2013, which is an increase of 11.4% over the previous year. The total number of intellectual property right registrations was 280,689, and it has increased by 12.2% and 15.1%, respectively, compared with 2012. The number of patent applications was 204,589, showing an increase of 8.3% over the previous year (192,575 cases). Samsung Electronics was the company that filed the most with 7,698 applications for patents and utility models last year, ranking first for two years successively, followed by LG Chemistry, LG Electronics, Hyundai Motor and Samsung Display. Last year the Europe Patent Office had 265,000 applications with an increase of 2.8% over the previous year, and America had 564,000 applications with an increase of 6.2%.

4. China ranked first in the world last year in the number of applications for patents

According to the Korea Intellectual Property Protection Association on the 5thofFebruary,China’sinventionpatentholdingamountper10thousandpersonsrecordedthemostwith4.02casesasoftheendoflastyear. The intellectual property protection level also was improved, such that the number of the related cases processed in 2012 was 16,227, showing an increase of 79.8% over the previous year. Of these, the number of patent dispute cases was 5,056, increasing by two times that of the same period of the previous year, and the case processing time was shortened indicating that the intellectual property infringement problem was being controlled more effectively. Meanwhile, also in the applications for designs, China is achieving significant numbers.

5. Biotechnology patents have increased, but commercialization is no more than 4.9%

According to a Swiss biotechnology market analysis institution, it is estimated that the world market would grow to a scale of 1 trillion 572 billion dollars at an annual average growth rate of 9.6% by 2015. The growth rate of the domestic biotechnology industry has recorded an annual average of 15.5% for five years since 2007. Of the 921 biotechnology businesses in this country, the number of businesses that have not generated sales as of 2011 was 244 (26.4%), and those that have not exceeded a break-even point were 284 (30.8%). An expert said, “It is difficult for an individual company to enter the biotechnology industry because the investment collection period is long, and therefore aggressive investment by the government is necessary.”

6. “Quality before quantity” to obtain a patent, a decrease of 20% compared to the previous year

According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the number of companies that indicated an acquisition of patents was 57, of which 47 were KOSDAQ-listed companies accounting for the most, and 9 were the companies listed in the securities market, and 1 was a KONEX-listed company. The number of companies that indicated an acquisition of patents in the same period of last year was 73. Compared with the acquisition of patents last year, there was a decrease of 16 companies or more than 20%. The reason for a large decrease in the number of the companies that obtained patents is considered to be due to business strategy. This means that so far quantity has been a matter of life and death in terms of patent acquisition, but henceforth companies will also take the qualitative aspects into greater consideration.