Asian Firms Lead Way on U.S. Patent List

By KAREN KAPLAN

Nov. 1, 1999 12 AM PT

Japanese and South Korean firms dominated the list of the top 10 companies that received the most U.S. patents in the first half of 1999, according to figures released last week by MicroPatent, an East Haven, Conn., firm that collects and distributes patent information. IBM, based in Armonk, N.Y., was the top patent producer, with 1,248 awarded in the first six months of the year. The only other American firm on the list was Schaumburg, Ill.-based Motorola, which claimed the No. 5 spot with 567 patents. The other companies in the top 10 were (in order): Canon, NEC, Sony, Samsung, Fujitsu, Toshiba, Mitsubishi and Matsushita.

More to Read

Business Technology and the Internet

Karen Kaplan

Karen Kaplan covers science and medical research for the Los Angeles Times. She has been a member of the science team since 2005, including 13 years as an editor. Her first decade at The Times was spent covering technology in the Business section as both a reporter and editor. She grew up in San Diego and is a graduate of MIT and Columbia University.

Asian Firms Lead Way on U.S. Patent List

More to Read

More From the Los Angeles Times