China Claims More Patents Than Any Country — Most Are Worthless

For nearly a decade, China has taken great pride at filing the largest number of domestic patents. It’s proving less keen on keeping them.

Despite huge numbers of filings, most patents are discarded by their fifth year as licensees balk at paying escalating fees. When it comes to design, more than 90 percent lapse — almost the mirror opposite of the U.S.

The high attrition rate is a symptom of the way China has pushed universities, companies, and backyard inventors to transform the country into a self-sufficient powerhouse. Subsidies and other incentives are geared toward making patent filings, rather than ...