Report: Patent growth reached 9.2 percent in 2012

Businesses may have been heavily impacted by the last recession, but funding for new projects have reached new highs, according to the the UN World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Based on data collected in 2012, about 2.35 million applications were filed that year—the highest it has been in 18 years.

"While economic recovery since the 2009 crisis has been uneven and has failed to bring down unacceptably high levels of unemployment, IP filings have increased at a faster rate than before the crisis," WIPO said in the release.

In the United States specifically, trends of a stronger economy have been shown in many ways. Whether that be a stronger real estate market or a 7 percent unemployment rate—which is a five year low—startups that are looking to pitch their innovations may want to consider taking steps to protect their intellectual property.

When three-quarters of America's research and development on these projects come from the private sector, business owners need to have the support they need to contact venture capitalists or major companies.

Google, for example, has increased spending on research and development by 40 percent in the past two years, which could be an indicator that other businesses that also have plans to expand will follow suit in the near future, according to the Wall Street Journal.

"[Research and development] spending decisions are often based on profit and profit margins, so R&D budgets always get a bit tentative," Martin Grueber, a Battelle senior researcher told the Journal.

Entrepreneurs that are looking for small business legal advice on intellectual property or other pressing concerns can reach out to a Phoenix business attorney. 

Categorised in: Intellectual Property Law

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