China registered one million active domestic patents in 2016, according to the State Intellectual Property Office on Jan 19, 2016.

China’s central government is making moves to improve protection and use of intellectual property (IP), with figures showing that China has become the third country in the world to register one million active domestic patents, behind only the United States and Japan.

China’s overseas patent applications also show a strong growth momentum. During China’s Going Abroad strategy implementation, a batch of emerging innovative enterprises joined international competitiveness relying on intellectual rights. The domestic Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) patent applications delivered to the State Intellectual Property Office reached 42,000 pieces in 2016, an increase of 48.5 percent year-on-year.

China’s current IP regulations are providing the basic protection of innovation, but there are still two major challenges — more patents on core technologies and more diversified allocation of patents, according to Gong Yalin, an official from the State Intellectual Property Office.

It is also expected that domestic patent ownership (Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan not included) will increase from 6.3 per 10,000 people in 2015 to 12 per 10,000 in 2020.

Intellectual property boasts double properties in institutional supply and technological supply, playing an important role in supply-side structural reform. Making good use of these patent materials is of great significance, according to Shen Changyu, commissioner of the State Intellectual Property Office.

The State Council on Jan 13 released a national plan on protection and application of intellectual property rights, which will be carried out during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020). The move is aimed at improving the legal environment, enhancing market value and strengthening comprehensive management of intellectual property rights in China.