Samsung's '5-Star' Patent Acquisitions... 7,500 Cases in the First Half of the Year

Up 62.3% Year-on-Year
Record High Expected to Be Broken

Samsung Electronics announced on the 7th that its consolidated operating profit for the second quarter reached 8.1 trillion won. On the same day, the Samsung flag fluttered in the wind in front of the Samsung Seocho Building in Seocho-gu. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Dongwoo Lee] Samsung Electronics is expected to break its record for the highest number of patents acquired this year.

According to Samsung Electronics' semi-annual report on the 21st, the company acquired a total of 7,474 patents in South Korea and the United States in the first half of this year, a 62.3% increase compared to the same period last year (4,605 patents). This figure accounts for more than half (54.1%) of last year's record high of 13,804 patents acquired in South Korea and the United States over the past decade.

By country, the number of patents acquired was 3,240 in South Korea and 4,234 in the United States, representing increases of 119% and 35.1%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. Since registering its first U.S. patent in 1984, Samsung Electronics has accumulated a total of 190,242 patents as of last year.

By country, the United States leads with a total of 75,472 patents, followed by South Korea (39,607 patents), Europe (35,784 patents), China (17,076 patents), and Japan (10,076 patents). Additionally, patents in other countries total 12,227.

Since 2014, Samsung Electronics has secured a patent protection network in its core businesses and new business areas such as mobile and semiconductors through mutual patent licensing agreements with global companies including Google, Nokia, Western Digital, Qualcomm, and Huawei.

Samsung Electronics stated, "These intellectual properties (IP) are patents related to smartphones, smart TVs, memory, and system LSI (large-scale integration), which are used in or planned to be utilized in our strategic business products."

They also explained that through patent acquisition, the company not only protects its business but also plays a role in checking competitors amid the proliferation of similar technologies and patents.

In addition to technological patents, Samsung Electronics is strengthening its acquisition of unique designs. In the first half of this year, the company acquired a total of 254 design patents in the United States. The number of design patents acquired in the U.S. over the past three years are 456 in total last year, 417 in 2018, and 310 in 2017, based on the first half of each year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.