The Netherlands has been ranked 9th in a list of the top patent-filing countries in the world, but it has also been shown to be the fastest growing country for filing patents too, according to figures from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Growth in patent filing

The report has shown that there has been a 6,6 percent growth in the number of patent filings internationally throughout 2012, 194.000 in total. The Netherlands was responsible for 3.992 of these, a 14 percent surge in growth on previous years, making it the fastest growing patent-filing country in the world.

The Netherlands is also one of only 5 countries who exhibited double-digit growth in the number of patents filed. Other countries in this bracket include China, the Republic of Korea, Finland and Japan.

Top filing companies

The recently renamed Royal Phillips lies ninth among the top 15 companies who filed patents during 2012.

Patents for new technology within the electrical machinery industry were the most popular, and Philips was able to outshine competitors such as LG Electronics with a total of 1.230 filings.

Source: WIPO