Patent-based industry analysis methodology and limitations

Patents are useful data for measuring the degree of innovation in a specific technology field and identifying the technical capabilities and strategies of companies that want to enter the market. For this reason, many companies and research institutes are recently evaluating market competitiveness and formulating future strategies through 'patent-based industry analysis'. However, since it is difficult to fully grasp all industry trends with patent information alone, understanding appropriate limitations and preparing supplementary measures is of paramount importance.

Below is a summary of the main methodologies and limitations of patent-based industry analysis from Pine IP perspective.

Key methodologies for patent-based industry analysis

(1) Create a Patent Map (Patent Map)

• notions: Collect and classify patent information in specific technology fields and derive key indicators such as technology trends, application sources, and application timing in the form of a visual map
• leverage: You can see who has what technology in the market and where R&D investment is concentrated at a glance
• Examples of use: R&D direction setting, investment priority determination, technology comparison analysis with competitors

(2) Patent Citation Analysis (Citation Analysis)

• notions: Identify technical impacts and development paths by analyzing citation relationships between patents
• leverage: Identify the most important technology platforms or source patents in the field by identifying key patents (Key Patents) and prior technologies
• Examples of use: Reviewing business cooperation possibilities, establishing licensing strategies, and preventing disputes

(3) Patent portfolio analysis (Portfolio Analysis)

• notions: Comprehensive evaluation of all patents held by companies or individuals in terms of scope, content, and value
• leverage: Easy to identify technology holdings compared to competitors and redefine the company's portfolio strategy
• Examples of use: Establishing corporate valuation and defense strategies (Defensive Publication) during M&A or investment

Limitations of patent-based industry analysis

(1) Existence of unpatented technology or undisclosed technology

A patent is a system for claiming rights on the premise of disclosure. Therefore, technologies that are being secretly researched and developed within the company or are protected by trade secrets are bound to be excluded from patent analysis. In other words, Hidden technology not appearing in patentsSince this can act as a game-changing variable, patent-based analysis alone is difficult to fully understand the entire industry.

(2) Time difference between application and actual market launch

It takes a considerable amount of time from patent application to registration and actual commercialization. Since technology changes rapidly or market conditions may change in the meantime, there is a possibility that patents will be perceived as a “record of the past.” time gapThere are risks associated with predicting future trends using only patent data without considering them.

(3) Difficulty in patent content and lack of analytical expertise

Because of the nature of patent documents, technical and legal terms are used in a complex manner, Understand and classify correctlyTo do this, expertise and experience are essential. If an analyst's expertise is lacking, they can come to wrong conclusions, which can lead to major confusion in formulating strategies.

(4) Risk of bias in specific countries and sectors

Patent information varies greatly from country to country and technology field. For example, patents in the IT field are concentrated in specific regions such as the US and China, while patent applications in other fields may be relatively low. Biased dataIf it is reflected in industry analysis as it is, there is a risk of formulating a strategy that is far from the actual market situation.

Complementary strategies for effective patent-based industry analysis

1. Combined with market data: While identifying technology trends based on patent information, accuracy should be improved by referring to actual market sales data, investment trends, and government policies.
2. Leveraging multi-source data: By comprehensively collecting and reviewing various materials such as papers, conference presentations, corporate news, and professional analysis reports, it is possible to capture technology trends that may be missed with patents alone.
3. Expert collaboration: When technical experts and intellectual property experts collaborate together, it becomes much easier to accurately interpret patent documents and check duplication/scope.
4. Apply scenario analysis techniques: It is important to take an approach that comprehensively considers future technological developments and changes in market demand by combining scenario planning (Scenario Planning) and Delphi techniques (Delphi) techniques (Delphi).

Advice from Pine IP

Patents are an essential source of information for understanding the development direction of an industry and the competitive structure between companies, but it can be dangerous to blindly believe in them to develop any strategy. Patent-based industry analysisIt only acts as a “starting point,” and the correct conclusion can only be reached by comprehensively evaluating various factors such as market data, technology trends, and the regulatory environment.

Pine IP is based on years of experience in patent applications, dispute response, and IP strategy consulting in target markets and technology fields desired by companies The most effective patent strategyWe are helping to establish If you have any questions or need further advice, please feel free to contact us.

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