Patents Pending
Thomson Reuters released a report titled “The Future Is Open: 2015 State of Innovation” on May 26, in which it listed the most innovative companies, research institutes, and technical fields by analyzing the patents and academic data made available for the past five years.
Five companies (Samsung, Amore Pacific, SK Hynix, LG, and Hyundai), two colleges (Seoul National University and Yonsei University) and two research institutes (Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology and Korea Aerospace Research Institute) put their names on the part of the list that covers Asia.
According to the report, the number of international patents edged up by just 3 percent last year to show the lowest growth since 2009, while that of academic research projects dropped by 34 percent during the same period. The decline in the numbers of patents and research projects was particularly conspicuous in the semiconductor industry.
The number of patents added up to 2.1 million, a record high. The rate of increase amounted to 21 percent with regards to food, tobacco, and beverages, 12 percent in the pharmaceutical industry, 8 percent for cosmetics, and wellness and 7 percent in biotechnology.
Samsung obtained 129.1 patents per 10,000 applications in the field of semiconductor technology development. It joined the ranks of the top 25 patent applicants in nine out of the 12 industrial fields analyzed in the report.