There are 21 APEC members, including the United States. Japan estimates that 80% of the world's patent applications, about 1.25 million, are generated by nations bordering the Pacific Ocean. An estimated 300,000 of the applications overlap, underscoring the potential benefit of a single application being recognized by all APEC member states. According to the Japanese government, about 30% (126,000 of 423,000) of Japan applications are filed with other APEC members, mostly the U.S., China, and South Korea. South Korea and China were #4 & #5, respectively, of application volume last year, according to a survey by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Local patent filings in China grew five-fold from 1995 to 2004, to nearly 66,000 in 2004.

Japan, Korea, and the U.S. have already started sharing information. Japan and the U.S. announced earlier this month a deal to streamline examination procedures, sharing results and electronic document exchange. The goal is, of course, to address the burgeoning pendency problem.

The USPTO and European Patent Office have been talking shop about similar plans to those proposed by Japan.

Japan hopes for a green light in September, when APEC economic ministers meet.

As Japan tops the list of Asia-Pacific patent applications, it has been speculated that the economies of standardization would most benefit Japan, but this is a bit silly. It is patent applicants that bear the burden of additional costs for different regulatory regimes. It is true that sharing examination results would be economical to patent agencies, and thus Japan, in the Pacific rim, might potentially benefit the most; but so would the U.S. It's a clear winner for all involved.

For the past three years, Japan's patent allowance rate has been around 29%. JPO pendency is stretching to two years. USPTO allowance rate in 2006 was 54%, a significant drop from previous years. USPTO pendency varies considerably by art unit; over three years to initial examination of computer-related applications is not unusual.