Innovation Asset Blog

Xerox invests in intellectual property

Document management company Xerox recently announced it is investing greater resources in its intellectual property portfolio.

According to the printing giant, the company received 1,031 patents in the United States during 2010. This is the largest number of patents the company has received in a single year and represents a 46 percent increase over 2009.

The company's increased investment in protecting its intellectual assets may point to a recognition of the centrality of intellectual property for making innovation profitable.

Sophie Vandebroek, chief technology officer and president of the Xerox Innovation Group, said "it is critical to our customers’ success that we continue to push the boundaries of the unknown."

According to Vandebroek, the company is "passionate about innovating - it is at the very core of what Xerox does." More than 2,400 Xerox employees have been granted five or more patents, she said.

Xerox received more patents than all but 19 companies in the U.S. in 2010. The largest number of patents were granted to IBM, followed by Samsung and Microsoft.

Peter Ackerman

Peter Ackerman

Founder & CEO, Innovation Asset Group, Inc.