USPTO Has Really Busy Year - Record Number of Patents Issued
According to IFI, the United States Patent and Trademark Office granted 219,614
patents in 2010. This is 31% more than was granted in 2009 and 29% more than granted in the next busiest year (2007). Granted applications took a big jump around 1998 when software patents began to be granted with more regularity (thanks, State Street Bank case).
Not everybody is happy about this, as some see this as merely an effort by the USPTO to reduce their backlog (now standing at 720,000+) and not as an increase in efficiency and quality.
In any event, a lot of patents were issued and the pace seems to be increasing. Happy days are here again.
