The number of Industrial Property applications filed with the Korean Intellectual Property Office in 2021 reached 592,615. That is the highest number ever recorded in Korea. The number of trademark applications, 285,821, was an increase of 10.8% over 2020, whereas the number of patent applications, 237,998, was an increase of 5% above 2020.

Considering the legal character of applicants, the number of applications from medium size companies and venture companies was 183,796, an increase of 11% over 2020. The number of applications from universities and public research institutes increased 6.1%, and applications from individuals increased 4.1% above 2020. However, the amount of applications from large enterprises decreased 4.8% from 2020. In particular, the largest increase in applications came from venture companies. Their application number reached 62,845, which was 19.8% increase over 2020.

As such, the application numbers of medium size companies, venture companies and individuals made up 65.2% of all applications, and this trend is continuing steadly.

This statistics show that basic infrastructure on intellectual property is strengthening in Korea.