New report: ‘The SPTO in figures’

New report: ‘The SPTO in figures’

'The SPTO in figures' is the annual report that provides an overview of innovative activity in Spain over the past year. This rigorous study, prepared by the SPTO's statistics service, presents accurate data on the various industrial property titles applied for and published in our country each year.

It is, therefore, an essential document for understanding the evolution of Spanish inventive activity and placing it in its national context through figures on inventions, distinctive signs, and industrial designs originating in Spain.

During 2024, the number of inventions (patents and utility models) applied for was 3,998, a figure 6.2% lower than the previous year. This slight decrease is largely explained by the reduction in international patent applications of Spanish origin filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), as the number of national patent applications grew by 2% compared to 2023. In terms of the profile of applicants, public bodies, universities, and research centers continue to play a predominant role in the Spanish inventive ecosystem. Once again, the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) tops the list with 47 applications, followed by the Polytechnic University of Valencia with 37. Other public universities in major Spanish cities such as Madrid, Seville, Alicante, Malaga, and Granada also feature prominently in this ranking. SEAT, S.A. is the private entity with the highest number of patent and utility model applications, ranking fifth with 17 applications.

Looking at the sectors of activity that filed the most patent applications in 2024, the number one is Civil Engineering, with a total of 88 applications, a 25.7% increase over the previous year. This sector thus overtakes Medical Technologies, which has fallen from first to fourth place, with a 9.6% decline. The sector that has experienced the highest growth is Other Special Machinery, with a spectacular increase of more than 50% compared to 2023, which has led it to occupy second place in the ranking. Third place goes to Transportation, with 67 applications.

The percentage of female inventors was 27.6% in 2024, a figure that is still far from the desired parity but is improving year on year, given that there has been growth of just over 2% compared to 2023. It should not be forgotten that Spain is a world leader in this regard and that the data on female inventors in our country is much higher than in neighboring countries. Furthermore, this percentage rises to 34.9% when applications with at least one female inventor are taken into account. However, these figures vary widely depending on the different sectors of activity. The areas with the highest percentage of female inventors and where parity is achieved are Pharmaceutical Products, Biological Materials Analysis, and Biotechnology. With regard to utility models, the percentage of female inventors in the Pharmaceutical Products sector is even higher than that of men, representing 51.7% of the total.

The autonomous communities (CCAA) with the highest number of patent applications are Madrid, the Valencian Community, and Andalusia. With regard to utility models, Catalonia leads the list, followed by the Community of Madrid and the Valencian Community.

Trademarks, meanwhile, reflect the good health of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in our country, with a total of 51,264 applications in 2024. This represents an increase of 5.1% over the previous year and marks the second consecutive year of growth. Compared to 2022, this growth amounts to 13.3% in just two years, already very close to the figures for the pre-pandemic period. Trade names, meanwhile, have also experienced a slight increase and continue the positive trend of recent years.

The Community of Madrid, Catalonia, and Andalusia are the regions that lead the list of autonomous communities with the highest number of trademarks applied for, accounting for more than 55% of the total between them. The percentage of trademarks applied for by women in 2024 stood at 33.6%, a figure very similar to that of the previous year.

Finally, a total of 13,965 industrial designs were applied for in 2024, 4.3% less than the previous year, which, in turn, had seen a large increase of 33.6% compared to 2022.

The Community of Madrid, the Valencian Community, and Catalonia are the three regions with the highest number of applications. Unlike other types of industrial property rights, where the public sector accounts for a significant proportion of total applications, in the case of industrial designs, it is the private sector that submits the vast majority of applications. Women account for 41.1% of all designs applied for, with the female presence increasing by more than 7 percentage points compared to 2023.

More information

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