Business method patent strategy portfolios; analysis of the Japanese main information providers

Abstract

Focusing on the business method patent (BMP) field, this paper is investigating the intellectual property strategies of individual information companies using application and registration data between 2000 and 2005. Utilising the authors’ specially developed relational database regarding patent records, this research makes an in-depth analysis of the tendencies in applications and registrations related to 1 the BMP field 2 individual companies. To quantify the features of each dataset, this paper introduces the ‘portfolio strategy of BMP’ concept, and illustrates the prioritised fields regarding to applications and registrations and the gaps between them. As a result, this research has discovered that the main players that have been aggressively applying and obtaining patents are the major companies related to the information and telecommunication fields. Also, the authors have clarified the companies’ priority fields concerning applications and registrations, and shed light on the features regarding the consistency of each firm’s intellectual property strategies by using the ‘BMP strategy portfolio’ analytical method.