Trademark Statistics in the Philippines
The numbers of trademark applicants are recorded by the IPOPHIL. There are very few sources for trademark statistics in the Philippines.
WIPO, or the World Intellectual Property Organization, defined Intellectual property (IP) as creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce.
IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyrights, and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create. By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest, the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish.[1]
Trademark was defined by the WIPO as a sign capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one enterprise from those of other enterprises. Trademarks are protected by intellectual property rights.[2]
The repeated term used in the definitions is the word “right”.
This means that owners of IP and trademark are interested in the protection of their rights.
To protect their rights, it is the duty and responsibility of these owners to register or record their IP and trademark to be protected by the laws applicable to their jurisdiction.
Through this article, we will take a look at Trademark Statistics in the Philippines for the registration of IP and trademarks owners to see how active trademark owners are when it comes to protecting their rights.
[1] What is Intellectual Property? https://www.wipo.int/about-ip/en/. Last accessed on April 18, 2024
[2] Trademarks. https://www.wipo.int/trademarks/en/. Last accessed on April 18, 2024.
Who collects Trademark Statistics in the Philippines?
Aside from the PSA, the IPOPHIL gathers some basic trademark statistics In the Philippines
The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) collects Trademark Statistics in the Philippines as part of its function of overseeing trademarks.
IP has become more important in the Philippines in recent years as brands, innovation, and technology have gained prominence.
IP registrations have continued to increase, as reflected in Trademark Statistics in the Philippines that we have seen.
The IPOPHL website provides statistics for IP registrations in the country starting from 2015 to 2019.[1]
In 2019, there were 48,741 IP registrations.
The bulk of the filings came from trademark applications came from 39,399.
The next nearest number to the trademark filing is patent filings in the number 4,024.
Trademarks accounted for 80% of the registrations, followed by patents at 8.2%.
Utility models were next at 4.6%, and copyright was at 3.5%.
Industrial design was last with 2.9%.
Of the 48,741 trademark applications, almost half of that number, or 23,445 came from resident filings or applications.
8,016 came from Madrid applications and 7,938 from applications from abroad or non-resident applications.
The trademark statistics in the Philippines of the IPOPHIL show the different applications filed.
Not all 48,741 trademark applications were granted by the IPOPHL as filing an application does not automatically equate to the application being granted.
IPOPHL will go over your application and check if the trademark is registerable or not. It will also check if there are other parties who want to oppose your application.
If there is no issue as to its registrability and no opposition, the trademark will be registered by the IPOPHL.
If there is an issue, then the trademark will not be registered or will be held until that issue is resolved.
There are 71.4%, or 28,167, registered applications from the total of 48,741 trademark applications.
The IPOPHL database only provides trademark statistics in the Philippines until 2019.
However, information can be seen and gathered from the internet as to the number of IP or trademark applications and registrations in the Philippines.
Based on the WIPO website,[2] there were trademark applications in the Philippines in the amount of 36,623.
The number differs from the IPOPHL database in 2019 for the possible reason that the number provided by the WIPO counted applications based on class count.
One Trademark application may have several classes covered, which may be the reason for the difference between the database of IPOPHL and the database of WIPO.
Using WIPO number, there was a drop from the year 2019 to the applications made in 2020.
The year 2019 has 36,623 applications, while the year 2020 has 34,489. There was a negative difference of 2,134. This may have been due to the pandemic.
The trademark statistics in the Philippines shows an increase and decrease in number of applicants – which are correlated to a difficult or growing environment.
However, as restrictions slowly eased and the economy built up once again in 2021, there was an increase in the number of applications for 2021 in the amount of 37,610 or an increase of 3,121.
This increase also continued through 2022, as applications increased slightly by
807 to 38,417.
That is the highest number of trademark applications using class count starting in 2013, based on the WIPO website.
This steady increase was actually the pattern for the last 10 years immediately preceding 2022.
According to IPOPHL Director General Rowel Barba, the increase in trademark and IP registrations in 2022 was brought about by the increase in economic activities due to the lax of quarantine restrictions in the country.[3]
He added that the increase was attributable to the agency’s efforts to raise awareness of IP rights.
However, in the first half of the year of 2023, there was a decline in IP filings due to lower trademark applications based on the IPOPHL data.
There was a decline in applications for 5.5% as compared to the same half in 2022.
Trademarks applications dropped to 22,203 in the first six months from 23,494 in the same period in 2022.
Trademark filings, which account for the bulk of the total IP applications, slipped by eight percent to 18,599.
According to IPOPHL, the lower trademark filings, an indicator for new products and services, reflects the economy’s slower movement in this period. Rowel Barba stated that the lower trademark filings are normal in the first semester of the year as they are more active in the second semester historically.
There is a decrease in application on 2022 compared to 2023 as seen in some of the trademark statistics
And even with the slow first semester, 2023 still recorded more IP applications compared to year 2022.
Rowel Barba stated in a December 2023 press conference that IP filings from January to October 2023 grew by nearly 2% to 41,815 from 41,022 in the same period in 2022.
Top IP filings in the first 10 months of last year were trademarks at 35,538; patents at 3,612; utility model at 1,538; and industrial designs at 1,127.
He also narrated the plans of IPOPHL to target an increase of 5% to 10% in IP filings for the current year.
This will be done by IPOPHL by increasing awareness of the benefits of registering their IP.[4]
[1] Statistics. https://www.ipophil.gov.ph/reference/statistics/. Last accessed on April 18, 2024.
[2] WIPO IP Statistics Data Center. https://www3.wipo.int/ipstats/key-search/indicator?lang=en&tab=null. Last accessed on April 18, 2024.
[3] IPOPHL registers more intellectual property filings. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1191676. By Kris Crismundo. December 29, 2022. Last accessed on April 18, 2024.
[4] IPOPHL targets up to 10% growth in IP filings in 2024. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1217067. By Kris Crismundo. January 16, 2024. Last accessed on April 18, 2024.
What is the interpretation of this trademark and IP application numbers?
Despite challenges, the current trademark statistics of the Philippines shows the promising trajectory of the Philippine economy
The increase in number that we see reflected in the trademark statistics in the Philippines is due to the Philippines’ growing economy.
It has become more important that trademark owners register their mark to protect it from unauthorized use by others.
It prevents another person from wrongly benefiting from the innovation and hard work of others.
Trademark infringement has also increased in recent years due to the increased opportunity to copy another product and take advantage of the established goodwill of a product known to the general public. And with more and more registrants, it is important to distinguish marks from one another since there are more trademarks registered that can be deemed similar.
Trademark owners are now more protective of their marks due to this.
If your mark was filed later than a mark that is similar to yours, your mark may be considered by IPOPHL as confusingly similar, and your registration will be denied.
For this reason, it became more important to register a trademark in the Philippines as soon as you could to protect your interests and the products or services with which your mark is associated.
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