The UK ranks eighth in telecommunication innovation, according to new research by Source Advisors.
The country has reported 1.85 per cent of telecom patents filings since 2010.
However, this is less than half that of Germany (4.08 per cent).
As a result, experts have called for greater efforts by the UK government to close the gap and be among the major nations for telecoms technologies.
The report has found that the UK would be well placed to capitalise on growth in telecom technology if the initiative was taken. Globally, the telecoms industry is witnessing high growth, with telecoms patent filings increasing by 382 per cent in the past decade and projected to continue to grow by 34 per cent by 2026.
The data has highlighted the key drivers of telecoms innovation in the UK, with the top areas being electric digital data processing, digital transmission and wireless communications, with companies such as BT and NChain at the forefront of UK activity.
The US and China continue to dominate the space, with more than three-fifths of global telecoms patent filings. And lack of action from the UK government on closing this gap could increase the risk of being overtaken in telecoms technology patents by France (1.62 per cent of global patent filings) and Italy (1.13 per cent), experts have warned.
This comes as the new Labour government targets growth through public and private investment in science and technology. In this vein, experts have called for the UK to have its own intellectual property strategy to support growth in the sector, which will be crucial for the UK if it wants to become a global leader.
Luke Hamm, managing director at Source Advisors, said, “Now the election is over and the new government gets down to business, the headline-grabbing commitment to economic growth now must take shape in actual policy. There are choices to be made on what we want to be famous for and how the legal, and regulatory framework complements this as well as how fiscal incentives will drive greater levels of investment.”
Akshay Thaman, IP consultant and policy lead, said, “This research shows that the UK sits at the lower end of the top 10 for patents filed in the telecoms industry. Ultimately, it highlights the level of work needed by the incoming government to position the UK to truly compete on the world stage. Now, funding routes such as the R&D tax relief regime, grant funding and private investment are all crucial to driving growth. However, we ask the Labour government to carefully consider the importance of intellectual property awareness, protection and commercialisation as a key lever to driving growth. Other comparative nations are clearly ahead of the UK in doing this. Perhaps it’s time for the UK to have its own intellectual property strategy.”
