Patent-Intensive Industries Drive Higher-Skilled, Better-Paying Jobs, USPTO Report Finds

The “Intellectual Property and the U.S. Economy: Third Edition” report issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) found that intellectual property (IP)-intensive industries continued to grow significantly. The recent report captured the timeframe immediately prior to the pandemic, 2014 to 2019, and displayed a correlation between the higher-paying jobs with more benefits in those industries and economic strength. Intellectual Asset Management interviewed Finnegan partner Jeff Totten to discuss report findings. 

Jeff highlighted that the report displayed an increase in patent filings through 2020, despite patent law changes such as the creation of the USPTO’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) and the early start of the pandemic. He stated, “This means that not only are these industries doing well economically, but they are continuing to invest in intellectual property at the same time.”

Additionally, Jeff suggested that the next report might show shifts in geographic distribution of IP-intensive industries and employee characteristics due to the pandemic. He concluded by stating, “What we can see is that contributing industries are also investing in IP. That’s the correlation we can draw from the report.”

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