IP filings rise 2% in 2025 to 53,231

Consolidated filings for intellectual property, including patents and trademarks, improved, reaching a record high of 53,231 in 2025, up 2.0 percent from 52,257 in 2024.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said the 8.3 percent year-on-year increase in patent applications and double-digit growth rates in utility model and industrial design filings, respectively, at 20.6% and 30.2%, drove the expansion, reflecting increased activity in developing inventions, practical solutions, and product designs.

“The new record in IP filings reflects a growing recognition of IP protection as a key strategy for competitiveness in a fast-paced digital economy. The sustained rise in applications, particularly in innovation-driven categories, points to accelerating innovation and a stronger appreciation of the need to protect IP assets,” said IPOPHL Acting Director General Nathaniel Arevalo.

An ex officio member of the National Innovation Council, IPOPHL attributed the momentum to a deepening culture of innovation, supported by its programs, such as the Innovation and Technology Support Office (ITSO) Program, which enables universities and research institutions to translate research into protected, market-ready assets.

In 2025, the ITSO network of 103 members posted strong growth in filings and increased commercialization activity.

The agency also highlighted its continuing efforts to raise IP awareness and build the capacity of innovators, designers, creators, and entrepreneurs, from application to valuation and commercialization.

“People are learning to better protect, manage and extract value from their IP assets. Enhanced IP capabilities are enabling this shift from creation to commercialization, ultimately creating jobs, growing enterprises, and driving higher-value economic activity,” ADG Arevalo added.

Filings

Broken down, patent filings reached 4,486, up 8.3% from 2024, while utility model filings grew to 1,918, up 20.6%, driven largely by resident applications at 1,848, up 20.4%, while non-resident filings totaled 70, up 25.0%.

For industrial designs, filings surged sharply to 2,576, up 30.2 percent, with resident filings increasing 46.4 percent to 1,587 and non-resident filings growing 10.5 percent to 989.

For trademarks, they reached 44,308 in 2025, maintaining a high level of activity despite a slight 0.5 percent contraction.

Copyright filings also expanded by 2.8 percent to 6,736 on the back of stronger awareness of IPOPHL’s copyright registration services and the importance of registration.

A breakdown of copyright deposits shows that books, pamphlets, articles, e-books, audiobooks, comics, novels, and other writings dominated with 4,918 deposits (73.0%). This was followed by computer programs, software, games, and applications (664, 9.9%) and musical compositions (286, 4.2%).