Ningbo's exceptional progress in the intellectual property sector in 2023 was unveiled by the Information Office of the Ningbo Municipal People's Government during a press conference on April 25.

As of the end of 2023, the number of effective invention patents in Ningbo surged past 55,000, reaching an unprecedented high. The value of pledged IP nearly hit 40 billion yuan ($5.52 billion), propelling Ningbo to first among vice-provincial level cities in China in that regard for the first time.

Ningbo also witnessed a substantial increase in high-value invention patent ownership, with the count reaching 18.67 patents per 10,000 people in 2023, marking a 29.31 percent year-on-year increase. The city's high-tech enterprises held 32,000 effective invention patents, reflecting a robust 21.7 percent year-on-year growth. Additionally, Ningbo welcomed 107 new national IP advantageous enterprises in the previous year, bringing its total to 280, securing the city's leading position in Zhejiang.

Meanwhile, the city spearheaded the establishment of a local IP trading service platform. In the past year, Ningbo registered 232 technology transfer contracts involving patent transfers, with a transaction value of 50.43 billion yuan, representing respective increases of 37.27 percent and 71.5 percent over the previous year. 

Notably, the Ningbo Intellectual Property Protection Center secured approval for the addition of a patent pre-examination channel in the field of intelligent manufacturing in November 2023, leading to a significant reduction in the patent examination period. The examination period for invention patents decreased from an average of 22 months to 3-6 months (as fast as 32 days), while the examination period for utility model patents decreased from an average of 7-8 months to 1 month (as fast as 3 days), and the examination period for design patents decreased from an average of 6 months to 7 working days (as fast as 2 days).