Japan’s JPO Green Transformation Technologies Inventory (GXTI) is announced.
Arising, in part, from the revised Corporate Governance Code launched in 2021 to ensure listed company disclosure on climate action, the JPO announced its new technologies inventory that “gives a bird’s-eye view of technologies related to Green Transformation (GX). Along with the patent search formulae linked to each category, it was published as the Green Transformation Technologies Inventory (GXTI).” The GXTI structural explanation and actual databases are available in English and Japanese.
The JPO’s source information for this article can be found in the GXTI Launch Release in June, 2022. Please see Kimura & Partners reporting on other Green Patent initiatives globally.
Background
The GXTI is expected to become a useful common asset for companies to make evidence-based analyses of GX technologies based on the patent information and to make necessary disclosures of their climate change-related information. The above – noted revision to Japan’s Corporate Governance Code in June 2021 was designed to compel companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange New Market Segments to enhance the quality and quantity of their information disclosure related to climate change. In other words, to support companies’ evidence-based accounts of their climate change-related information with a new technologies inventory related to the so-called Green Transformation (GX).
The Business and Strategy Implication
Kimura & Partners monitors and reports here on all important JPO activities. In particular, we identify matters of importance to innovative and growing SMEs, and the GTXI qualifies as such.
Consider the JPO’s comment that “the GXTI presents an example of how GX technologies can be categorized, and how patent documents can be searched for a particular GX technology. With the GXTI, a company can objectively quantify their strengths in GX technology by quoting the number of their patent applications in each technology category, for instance. Making comparisons with other companies in terms of technology categories in the GXTI might also be useful for planning their business strategy and patent strategy.”
International Implications
Consider these global implications in which the JPO is taking an active leadership role:
- The JPO intends to take international initiatives and to hold discussions with intellectual property offices of the United States, Europe, China, and Korea, as well as the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) regarding the effective use and the improvement of the GXTI. The GXTI will be reviewed and updated as necessary.
- The JPO plans to conduct a survey using the GXTI to outline the trends in patent applications in each country by GXTI technology category, and to identify and disseminate evidence-based information on areas in which Japan has strengths.
- In addition to visualizing the share and transition of GX technology in Japan and other countries, this survey report is also intended to be used by companies and others as a reference for analysis methods when conducting patent analysis using GXTI.
- The report will be released in April or May 2023. We also plan to release the progress of the survey as needed during FY2022.
Some Details: Credibility and Structure
The GXTI appears to be a highly credible initiative that will carry weight in Japan and globally. Again details and links to the database are available here.
Credibility
The GXTI database and patent search formulae were developed by an external panel of experts. In turn, the GXTI is observed and monitored by such entities as the Energy and Environment Innovation Strategy Office, Industrial Science and Technology Policy and Environment Bureau, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Office of Global Environment and Decarbonizing Innovation Research, Global Environment Bureau and the Ministry of the Environment.
Structure
The GXTI consists of three levels of hierarchy as follows:
Level 1 (comprises 6 large categories)
Level 2 (comprises 32 medium categories)
Level 3 (comprises 86 small categories)
The Level 1 categories are as follows: (1) energy supply(gxA), (2) energy demand(gxB), (3) energy storage(gxC), (4) CO2 reduction in non-energy sectors(gxD) and (5) capture, storage, utilization and removal of greenhouse gas(gxE).
A separate set of four transversal perspectives(gxY) is also provided in the Level 1 Category. The four perspectives are “control-related technology”, “measurement-related technology”, “business-related technology” and “ICT-related technology”. GxY is the cross tabulation of these four perspectives and five GX technology categories, gxA to gxE. In other words, the number of patent documents in gxY is an inner number of the number of patent documents in gxA-gxE. GxY can be used to identify trends in GX technologies which include each of the transversal perspectives. (“Energy Supply X Control and Coordination”, for example)
Summary Comment
Kimura & Partners’ focus is on SME’s and helping SMEs win in the IP Battleground. Japan’s JPO Green Transformation Technologies Inventory (GXTI) has now been launched. We see the WIPO GREEN, IPO GREEN and the GXTI as useful resources for all companies, including SME’s in developing and improving their IP and business strategy. So we also expect the GXTI to be a valuable resource in helping us guide clients, and their IP and business strategies.
