South Korea has announced plans to allocate 934.1 billion won (equivalent to $698.64 million) towards national intellectual property (IP) projects in 2024. This investment aims to help the country’s innovation capabilities and enhance its competitiveness in strategic technology sectors.
Additionally, South Korea will establish a dedicated organization tasked with analyzing domestic and foreign patents related to 12 national strategic technologies. This initiative aims to support a strong IP ecosystem and leverage intellectual property for economic growth and technological advancement.
The unveiling of the plan occurred during a meeting organized by South Korea’s Presidential Council on Intellectual Property on Tuesday. The purpose of the gathering was to endorse the national IP implementation plan for 2024, which comprises 75 tasks to advance various aspects of intellectual property management and utilization.
Among the initiatives outlined in the implementation plan is the establishment of a dedicated organization tasked with promoting the creation and utilization of intellectual property specifically tailored for national strategic technologies. With this effort, South Korea is fostering innovation and strengthening its position in key technology sectors.
According to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK), South Korea recorded a cross-border trade surplus in intellectual property rights (IPRs) amounting to US$180 million last year. This surplus has shown a major turnaround from the previous year’s deficit of $1.11 billion, marking the second-highest surplus since 2021.Â
The positive balance in IPR trade was partly driven by a reduction in the deficit from trade of industrial property rights, including patents, which amounted to $1.86 billion in the same period.
The establishment of the dedicated organization, the ‘National Strategic Technology Patent Support Team,’ will fall under the purview of the Korea Intellectual Property Strategy Agency (KISTA). This team will analyse both domestic and international patents and technological trends related to the selected national strategic technologies.Â
Its primary objective will be to enhance the efficiency of research and development (R&D) initiatives by providing comprehensive support in patent analysis and technology forecasting.
In parallel, South Korea achieved a notable surplus of $2.21 billion in copyright trade, encompassing cultural and artistic content and software development, in the preceding year. This surplus marks an increase from the previous year’s surplus of $1.74 billion.Â
Notably, the country attained record trade surpluses in various sectors, including cultural and artistic copyrights, which were $1.1 billion, and music and films, which were $950 million, according to the available data.
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