WHY ISRAEL?
until the end of the PCT process, two and a half years aſter their first filing).
When evaluating these statistics in relation to economic activity in terms of GDP, and also in terms of population, an interesting picture emerges.
GDP and population rankings
In 2008, the Israeli economy was 53rd in the world, with a GDP of $53.4 billion (compared to a US GDP of $14,440 billion) and was the world’s 97th most populous country, with a population of 7.24 million (compared with China’s 1.34 billion).
Nevertheless, according to WIPO statistics, Israel’s mere 1,615 resident filings during 2007 place it in 12th place in the world when evaluated as a function of its GDP.
is in seventh place with 226, and the US has 174. China and India hold 24th and 25th place, with five filings and one filing respectively per million inhabitants.
Israel as a patent destination
Trends in foreign-originating patent applications filed in Israel indicate the attractiveness of Israel as a destination market, generally, and particularly in specific industries.
“ TRENDS IN FOREIGN- ORIGINATING PATENT APPLICATIONS FILED IN ISRAEL INDICATE THE ATTRACTIVENESS OF ISRAEL AS A DESTINATION MARKET, GENERALLY, AND PARTICULARLY IN SPECIFIC INDUSTRIES.”
6,394 foreign-originating patent applications were filed in Israel in 2007, placing Israel in seventh place as a destination market, in terms of non-resident patent applications per billion dollars of GDP, behind Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Japan, the Netherlands and South Korea. However, when entering the ‘national phase’ of PCT applications, European countries are not considered as separate entities, but sit under the umbrella of the European Patent Office (EPO). By substituting ‘Europe’ for the individual country designations of Finland, Sweden and the Netherlands (Switzerland not being part of the EPO), Israel moves up to fiſth place in the rankings, aſter Europe, Switzerland, Japan and South Korea, generally consistent with the other indicators presented above.
In relative terms, Israel is more attractive as a patent jurisdiction than most other countries, including Canada, the US, Spain, China and Russia.
Country of origin
According to figures released by the Israel Patent Office for 2006, fully 45 percent of all patent applications filed in Israel originated in the United States, and 26 percent originated in Israel. Te remaining 29 percent were divided between Germany (10 percent), Switzerland (6 percent), the UK (5 percent), Japan and France (4 percent each).
Largest filers
Israeli technology for export in 2008
When considering the number of PCT filings per billion dollars of GDP, Israel comes 4th, with 9.3 applications per billion dollars, behind Switzerland (12.0), Sweden (11.9) and Finland (10.9), but ahead of fiſth-ranked Japan, which has a third fewer filings, at 6.6, and the US, which has a mere 3.7. China and India have a way to go still, standing on 0.8 and 0.2 respectively.
Evaluating the number of PCT filings per capita provides a similar picture, showing Israel with 260 filings per million inhabitants in fourth place, behind Switzerland (504), Sweden (454) and Finland (404). By way of comparison, Japan
In the period of 2006 to 2010, the largest patent filers in Israel were Qualcomm with 442 applications, Hoffman La Roche with 350 applications, BASF with 175 applications, Astra Zeneca with 173 Applications and Novartis with 152 Applications.
Local applicants with large numbers of local filings included Yeda, the tech transfer arm of the Weizmann Institute, with 89 applications; Isscar, a hard-metal cutting tool manufacturer, with 87 applications; Teva Pharmaceuticals and various daughter companies, with 83 applications; military technology company Rafael, with 67 applications; and Israel Aircraſt Industries, with 64 applications.
34 World Intellectual Property Review May/June 2011
Jeremy Ben-David is a licensed Israel patent and trademark Attorney with over 20 years’ experience. He holds a UK degree in civil engineering. Aſter emigrating from England in 1984, he co-founded JMB & Co. together with his father, Dr Stanley J. Davis. In August 2008, JMB & Co. merged with Fa©tor-Patent Attorneys to form JMB, Fa©tor & Co., one of Israel’s leading IP firms. Ben-David is active in several professional organisations. He is a member of the Israel Association of Patent Attorneys, AIPPI and INTA, and a former INTA committee member.
Israeli companies are world leaders in terms of soſtware development, encryption, image analysis, medical devices, telecommunications, fashion, pharmaceuticals, military equipment and agriculture. Companies operating in any of these fields cannot afford not to file patents in Israel.
Dr Michael Factor is a partner at JMB, Fa©tor & Co. He can be contacted at:
mfactor@israel-patents.co.il
Jeremy Ben-David is managing partner at JMB, Fa©tor & Co. He can be contacted at:
jmb@israel-patents.co.il
Michael Factor was born in the UK and made aliyah in 1994. He is a licensed Israel patent attorney with numerous professional affiliations, including the IPA, LES, the AEA and the AIPPI. Factor has a PhD in applied physics from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, an MEng in materials science and engineering from Imperial College, London, and an LLB from the Ono Academic College, Israel. Factor has very wide experience in draſting patent applications and representing clients before the local and international patent offices.
www.worldipreview.com
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