ABSTRACT
IP trends in a country can be measured through the number of applications and registered titles in that country within a defined lapse of time. The main objective of this chapter is to scrutinize trademark, design, and patent applications and issued titles in the developing world from 2011 to 2016 based on their income status. Countries are selected among the developing world taking into consideration their level of development and their economic situation.
It should be recalled that the World Bank classifies countries or economies using the gross national income (GNI) per capita as the main criterion (converted into US dollars) [World Bank, World Bank Y19 Analytical Classifications, July 2018 (https://www.worldbank.org">www.worldbank.org)]. Based on the 2018 World Bank analytical classification of July 2018, economies are classified as follows:
Low-income economies: GNI per capita of $995 or less
Lower-middle-income economies: GNI per capita of $996–$3,895
Upper-middle-income economies: GNI per capita of $3,896–$12,055
High-income economies: GNI per capita of $12,056 or more
It is worth mentioning that a GNI per capita for a certain economy may vary from one estimation/classification year to another. The evident illustration pertains to Cambodia, Argentina, the Russian Federation, and Tunisia. Cambodia is now deemed to be a lower- middle-income economy since the 2017 estimation although it was considered in previous estimations as a low-income economy; Argentina was considered a high-income economy, but suffered a decline in 2017 to be considered as an upper-middle-income economy. Actually, according to the 2018 estimation, Argentina is again considered a high-income economy; the Russian Federation is regarded from the 2015 estimation as an upper-middle-income economy although in the past it was considered as a high-income economy; and Tunisia is actually classified as a lower-middle-income economy while previously it was deemed to be an upper-middle-income economy. (This is to say that readers must understand that if there is any new estimation of income/GNI per capita by the World Bank in 2019, the classification for some selected countries may change for higher income status or for lower income status.)
In this chapter, the IP trends in the developing world from 2011 to 2016 are assessed through the numbers of applications and registrations of trademarks, designs, and patents of selected countries grouped by their income status as classified by the World Bank: namely, low-income economies, lower-middle-income economies, upper-middle-income economies, and high-income economies. In other words, the trend in the developing world is assessed among countries falling under the same income status/grouping with regard to each selected IP category. A comparative approach with the world ratio is considered, where appropriate.
