TSMC’s FY18 patent applications ranked first for 3 years in a row

Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) announced the ranking of patent applications in 2018 today on January 28th. In patent applications including invention, design, and new models, TSMC (2330-TW) took the first place with 944 applications and Qualcomm (QCOM-US) took the first place with 1011 applications in foreign companies. Regarding patent certifications, TSMC ranked first in both Taiwan and foreign companies.

TIPO pointed out that the number of TSMC’s patent applications has continued to grow since 2015, and set a new high in 2018, ranking first for 3 years in a row. Last year, AUO (2409-TW), the panel maker, took the second place with 586 applications. And, Realtek (2379-TW), an IC design company, took the third place with 195 applications, and entered the top ten for the first time.

In addition, HTC (2498-TW), a mobile phone manufacturer, returned to the 9th place with 185 application (+78% YoY). Foxconn (2317-TW), the world"s largest contract electronics manufacturer, took the 6th place with 246 applications (-49% YoY).

Regarding foreign companies, Qualcomm ranked first with 1011 applications (+67% YoY), growing notably among the top ten legal persons. Alibaba (BABA-US) retired to the second place with 599 applications. On the other hands, Disco (6146-JP) and Corning (GLW-US) entered the top ten for the first time. OPPO, a Chinese consumer electronics and mobile communications company, ranked from 7th in 2017 to 9th last year (-22% YoY) with 253 applications.

According to TIPO, from the perspective of the 100 Best patent application structure, enterprise is the main driver for R&D and innovation in Taiwan. The application cases are concentrated in invention patents, which is account for 78%.