--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/are-trends-in-patenting-reflective-of-innovative-activity-in-canada/" title: "Are Trends in Patenting Reflective of Innovative Activity in Canada" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T12:42:06+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T12:42:06+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "Canada" - "census metropolitan areas" - "innovation" - "intellectual property" - "patenting trends" - "patents" - "provinces" - "R&D" - "research and development" country_focus: - "Canada" province_region: - "National" research_theme: - "Technology and Innovation" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # Are Trends in Patenting Reflective of Innovative Activity in Canada Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/are-trends-in-patenting-reflective-of-innovative-activity-in-canada/ # Are Trends in Patenting Reflective of Innovative Activity in Canada [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2017-02-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Greenspon, Jacob, and Erika Rodrigues. 2017. “Are Trends in Patenting Reflective of Innovative Activity in Canada.” CSLS Research Report 2017-02. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/are-trends-in-patenting-reflective-of-innovative-activity-in-canada/ ## Authors: - Jacob Greenspon Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) - Erika Rodrigues Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) ## Report 2017-02 April 2017 132 pages ## Related research [Living Standards Domain of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing Andrew Sharpe, Christopher Ross November 2011 | Report 2011-17 | 124 pages](https://csls.ca/research/living-standards-domain-of-the-canadian-index-of-wellbeing-2011-17/) [Measuring the Appropriate Outcomes for Better Decision-Making: A Framework to Guide the Analysis of Health Policy Matthew Calver March 2016 | Report 2016-03 | 132 pages](https://csls.ca/research/measuring-the-appropriate-outcomes-for-better-decision-making-a-framework-to-guide-the-analysis-of-health-policy-2016-03/) [Productivity: Key to Economic Success Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) March 1998 | Report 1998-01 | 99 pages](https://csls.ca/research/productivity-key-to-economic-success/) [Apprenticeship in Canada: A Training System Under Siege? 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Central to these recent trends is an apparent paradox: the number of patents granted to Canadians, an output indicator of innovative activity, has increased substantially between 2000 and 2014 despite decreased business sector expenditures on research and development, a crucial input to innovation, in the same period. This report examines this issue and provides several potential explanations as to why this is the case, the strongest being that the divergence between trends in patenting and R&D expenditures is caused by greater efficiency of research processes and an increase in strategic filings of patents. Furthermore, this report documents recent trends in patenting activity in Canada from several sources and compares trends across different technologies. Patenting trends are also used to give a regional perspective on innovation by tracking the level of innovative activity occurring in provinces and census metropolitan areas. Ce rapport met en lumière les tendances de l’innovation canadienne telles que reflétées par les brevets. Au cœur de ces tendances récentes se trouve un paradoxe apparent : le nombre de brevets accordés à des Canadiens, un indicateur de résultat de l’activité innovante, a augmenté considérablement entre 2000 et 2014, malgré une diminution des dépenses des entreprises en recherche et développement, un intrant essentiel à l’innovation, durant la même période. Ce rapport examine cette question et propose plusieurs explications potentielles, la plus probable étant que la divergence entre les tendances des brevets et des dépenses en R-D s’explique par une plus grande efficacité des processus de recherche et par une hausse des dépôts stratégiques de brevets. De plus, ce rapport documente les tendances récentes de l’activité de brevetage au Canada à partir de plusieurs sources et compare les tendances entre différentes technologies. Les tendances des brevets sont également utilisées pour offrir une perspective régionale sur l’innovation, en suivant le niveau d’activité innovante dans les provinces et les régions métropolitaines de recensement. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2017-02-1.pdf)