The $46 million Indian patent-services offshoring industry is set to bag a big share of the $2.2 billion global patent-services market in the next five years. It is expected to touch $206 million mark by 2012, according to a recently released study conducted by ValueNotes Research, a business intelligence and research firm.
At present, there are 50 offshore patent-services providers in India with an employee base of 1,550 people. This number is expected to increase to 6,950 in the coming five years, cites the research report. In the current scenario, the third-party service providers account for 75 percent of the industry, while captives form the rest of the 40 percent. The research also names the top five providers in the Indian offshore patent-services industry of which Evalueserve wins the top rug, followed by Pangea3, CPA Global, Lexadigm and Cliarvolex.

The fundamental driver that affects the expansion of the Indian patent-services offshoring industry — generally patent searches, patent illustration, proofreading, patent drafting, patent analysis, patent asset management, patent litigation support and consulting — is the growth of the worldwide patent market. In 2007, more than 1.8 million applications were filed worldwide accounting for filing costs equivalent to $30 billion. The patent offshore of the U.S., Japan, China, Republic of Korea and Europe accounted for 83 percent of worldwide patent filing. The American companies form the largest customer base (nearly 60 percent) for Indian service providers.

Other drivers that boost the offshore patent-services industry in India include increased offshoring of R&D activity, lack of manpower and the impact of the U.S. Patent Reform Act, 2007.

Indian Patent-Services Providers' Dashboard

Rank

Player

Rationale for high growth

1

Evalueserve

An established KPO Largest provider in terms of manpower Well formed senior and mid-level management team Significant specialization within the patents segment Multigeography delivery and marketing centers.

2

Pangea3

Backed by Sequoia Capital An established provider with significant scale in IP services Teams with specific domain expertise in patents High-end services form the majority of their work.

3

CPA Global

Early mover in the IP outsourcing industry Established on-shore presence Demonstrates capability to scale.

4

Lexadigm

Established legal services provider Involves several American attorneys in their mgmt. team Establishes affiliate relationships with experienced IP practitioners in most major, global jurisdictions Several onshore delivery centers and sales offices Aggressive growth plans.

5

Clairvolex

Backed by established law firm, LexOrbis and Agnes Holdings Has financial strength to scale Aggressive growth plans.

Source: ValueNotes Research