UN: China now first in patent applications

"It's a very clear strategy ... and it is working. I would put it down to that broad movement towards becoming a higher-value economy," he said.

"I think what we see in terms of intellectual property applications is a consequence of that strategy," he added.

According to the report, China's telecom giant Huawei Technologies, with 4,411 published PCT applications, was the top corporate filer for the third consecutive year.

It was followed by Mitsubishi Electric Corp of Japan (2,661), Samsung Electronics of Korea (2,334), Qualcomm Inc of the US (2,127); and Guang Dong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications of China (1,927).

Among educational institutions, the University of California maintained its top ranking with 470 published applications in 2019. Tsinghua University (265) was second, followed by Shenzhen University (247), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (230), and South China University of Technology (164).

According to the report, a record 265,800 international patent applications were filed last year, an increase of 5.2 percent over 2018.

"Last year was the best year we have experienced in the course of the past decade. In fact, it was the best year we have experienced in the history of the organization," Gurry said in the broadcast.

"IP (intellectual property) is increasingly at the heart of global competition. Nevertheless, it is important to remember that innovation is not a zero-sum game — that a net increase in global innovation means new drugs, communications technologies, solutions for global challenges that benefit everyone, wherever they live," Gurry said.