Table 6-22
ICT and biotechnology patents share of total USPTO and EPO patents granted: Selected years, 1993–2006
 
 
Industry/agency   1993   1996   2000   2003   2005   2006
 
ICT                        
EPO   23.6   28.1   27.3   25.3   27.2   29.2
USPTO   26.3   31.6   34.9   39.9   45.6   49.3
Biotechnology                        
EPO   3.2   2.9   3.1   2.9   3.9   4.6
USPTO   2.0   2.8   3.6   3.1   2.9   3.3
 

EPO = European Patent Office; ICT = information and communications technology; USPTO = U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

NOTES: ICT includes telecommunications, consumer electronics, computers and office machinery, and other ICT as defined by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Biotechnology defined by OECD. Patent counts on fractional-count basis. For patent grants with multiple inventors from different countries, each country receives fractional credit based on proportion of its participating inventors.

SOURCES: OECD, Patent database, http://stats.oecd.org/wbos/default.aspx?DatasetCode=PATS_IPC, accessed 15 February 2007. See appendix tables 6-39, 6-40, and 6-43 to 6-45.

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