A total of 696,000 invention patents were authorized in China in 2021, China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) said on Thursday.

Shen Changyu, head of CNIPA, shared at a national conference a work report detailing advances in the field of intellectual property rights (IPR), an issue of great value and importance in boosting innovation and high-quality development.

In 2021, 73,000 international patent applications were filed in China via the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), said Shen. The PCT is a widely used metric for measuring innovative activity. 

China also received 5,928 international trademark applications using the Madrid System and registered 13,000 integrated circuit layout designs last year. The examination time of high-value invention patents and the average examination cycle of invention patents have both been shortened, said Shen. 

In terms of IPR protection, the number of administrative rulings on patent infringement disputes saw a year-on-year increase of 17.4 percent in 2021. The establishment of 25 new protection centers and rapid rights protection centers was approved, and the public's satisfaction with IPR protection grew to 80.61 points, according to the report. 

The added value of China's patent-intensive industries hit 12.13 trillion yuan (about 1.9 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2020, accounting for 11.97 percent of GDP, an increase of 0.35 percentage points above the previous year. 

According to a 15-year plan (2021-2035) on IPR development, China has set a clear target of the added value of patent-intensive industries accounting for 13 percent of GDP by 2025. The development of patent-intensive industries demonstrates the close integration of intellectual property, scientific and technological innovation and industrial economic development. 

Shen also noted that China has carried out 37 high-level bilateral and multilateral cloud conferences, with 244 China-EU geographical indications being mutually recognized and protected.