Philip Morris International has a total of 28446 patents globally, out of which 13940 have been granted. Of these 28446 patents, more than 76% patents are active. Europe (EPO) is where Philip Morris International has filed the maximum number of patents, followed by United States of America and China. Parallelly, Europe (EPO) seems to be the main focused R&D centre and also United States of America is the origin country of Philip Morris International.
Philip Morris International was founded in the year 1847. The Company is a tobacco company focused on creating a smoke-free future by expanding its product range beyond tobacco and nicotine. The company sells cigarettes, e-vapor and oral smoke-less products, serving customers globally. PMI is evolving its portfolio to include long-term products outside the tobacco sector, aiming to transform its business model for a healthier future.
Do read about some of the most popular patents of Philip Morris International which have been covered by us in this article and also you can find Philip Morris International patents information, the worldwide patent filing activity and its patent filing trend over the years, and many other stats over Philip Morris International patent portfolio.
How many patents does Philip Morris International have?
Philip Morris International has a total of 28446 patents globally. These patents belong to 8457 unique patent families. Out of 28446 patents, 21750 patents are active.
Top Patent Contributing Subsidiaries of Philip Morris International
| Subsidiaries | Patent Families |
| Philip Morris Products | 7537 |
| Vectura | 414 |
| Fertin Pharma | 169 |
| Swedish Match | 76 |
| Jagotec | 64 |
| Rothmans Benson & Hedges | 42 |
| Philip Morris International | 38 |
| Innovata Limited | 37 |
| Syqe Medical | 28 |
| Nordiccan | 26 |
| Activaero | 16 |
| Otitopic | 9 |
| Bagger-Soerensen & Co | 1 |
How Many Patents did Philip Morris International File Every Year?
Are you wondering why there is a drop in patent filing for the last two years? It is because a patent application can take up to 18 months to get published. Certainly, it doesn’t suggest a decrease in the patent filing.
| Year of Patents Filing or Grant | Philip Morris International Applications Filed | Philip Morris International Patents Granted |
| 2024 | 124 | 1261 |
| 2023 | 840 | 1875 |
| 2022 | 1713 | 1712 |
| 2021 | 2199 | 1776 |
| 2020 | 2173 | 1367 |
| 2019 | 2217 | 1402 |
| 2018 | 2269 | 1084 |
| 2017 | 2326 | 865 |
| 2016 | 2744 | 683 |
| 2015 | 2366 | 462 |
| 2014 | 1898 | 337 |
| 2013 | 1618 | 232 |
How many Philip Morris International patents are Alive/Dead?
How Many Patents did Philip Morris International File in Different Countries?
Countries in which Philip Morris International Filed Patents
| Country | Patents |
| Europe (EPO) | 2555 |
| United States of America | 2325 |
| China | 2171 |
| Korea (South) | 2105 |
| Japan | 1807 |
| Russia | 1596 |
| Brazil | 1194 |
| Mexico | 942 |
| Canada | 877 |
| Israel | 793 |
| Australia | 745 |
| Poland | 703 |
| Hong Kong (S.A.R.) | 697 |
| Spain | 646 |
| Singapore | 574 |
| India | 556 |
| Turkey | 556 |
| Malaysia | 508 |
| Philippines | 481 |
| Indonesia | 480 |
| Cambodia | 381 |
| Hungary | 332 |
| Thailand | 329 |
| Ukraine | 328 |
| Viet Nam | 321 |
| Taiwan | 297 |
| Argentina | 262 |
| Denmark | 228 |
| Portugal | 215 |
| New Zealand | 141 |
| United Kingdom | 125 |
| Slovenia | 123 |
| Serbia | 123 |
| Lithuania | 90 |
| Germany | 70 |
| Eurasia | 55 |
| Austria | 47 |
| Norway | 44 |
| Colombia | 35 |
| Gulf Cooperation Council | 24 |
| Cyprus | 20 |
| Croatia | 17 |
| Chile | 8 |
| Ecuador | 7 |
| Africa | 7 |
| Uruguay | 7 |
| Finland | 7 |
| Sweden | 7 |
| Costa Rica | 6 |
| Italy | 6 |
| Czech Republic | 5 |
| Morocco | 4 |
| Egypt | 4 |
| San Marino | 3 |
| France | 3 |
| Romania | 2 |
| Bulgaria | 2 |
| Netherlands | 2 |
| Slovakia | 2 |
| Luxembourg | 2 |
| Georgia | 2 |
| Iceland | 1 |
| Estonia | 1 |
| Tunisia | 1 |
| El Salvador | 1 |
Where are Research Centres of Philip Morris International Patents Located?
Also, did you know that Philip Morris is among the leading patent filers in Biodegradable Cigarette Filters! Click here to read more.
10 Best Philip Morris International Patents
WO2010003480A1 is the most popular patent in the Philip Morris International portfolio. It has received 602 citations so far from companies like R. J. Reynolds Tobacco, Rai Strategic Holdings and Juul Labs.
Below is the list of 10 most cited patents of Philip Morris International:
| Publication Number | Citation Count |
| WO2010003480A1 | 602 |
| EP2316286A1 | 509 |
| EP2399636A1 | 307 |
| WO2013083635A1 | 285 |
| WO2013098405A2 | 270 |
| WO2013098395A1 | 268 |
| WO2015176898A1 | 264 |
| WO2013060781A1 | 256 |
| WO2012072762A1 | 256 |
| EP2468118A1 | 252 |
Which Companies are using Philip Morris International Patents to Advance their Research?
If patents or patents from a particular technology area of a company receive a lot of citations, it implies that the technology is being followed and incrementally innovated by the citing companies. It also indicates that citing companies are working on similar and closely related technologies.
The top citing companies in the Philip Morris International patent portfolio are Altria Client Services, Rai Strategic Holdings, and British American Tobacco.
List of the top forward citing Companies –
| Company | Number of Patents |
| Altria Client Services | 96 |
| Rai Strategic Holdings | 41 |
| British American Tobacco | 40 |
| Vectura | 27 |
| Japan Tobacco | 20 |
| JT International | 20 |
| Fertin Pharma | 16 |
| Fontem Holdings | 16 |
| Ayr | 14 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 13 |
Count of 102 and 103 Type Rejections based on Philip Morris International Patents
Top Philip Morris International Patents used in Rejecting Most Patent Applications
| Patent Number | Count of Rejected Applications |
| US10045561B2 | 19 |
| US7950389B2 | 17 |
| US9763476B2 | 15 |
| US10668058B2 | 12 |
| US10874142B2 | 12 |
| US9949507B2 | 11 |
| US9814263B2 | 11 |
| US20140353856A1 | 11 |
| US8168218B2 | 10 |
| US9499331B2 | 10 |
| US8910625B2 | 9 |
| US20080127972A1 | 9 |
| US9949504B2 | 9 |
| US10143233B2 | 9 |
| US6604698B2 | 9 |
Philip Morris International has spent more than USD 8.1 billion on research and development of smoke-free goods. Philip Morris International sets high standards in science and research, and its scientific practises are influenced by the pharmaceutical sector. Philip Morris International makes its scientific results available to the public and encourages others to study it. Its mission is to provide current adult smokers with a better alternative to continuing to smoke. What steps is Philip Morris International taking to bring this vision to life?
By creating a line of smoke-free products that supply nicotine without the use of tobacco and are satisfying to current adult smokers.
Philip Morris International is putting resources, effort, and money towards developing better cigarette alternatives. Its product development pipeline comprises suitable product platforms that can cater to the different tastes of adult smokers and hence assist them in making a complete changeover.
Philip Morris International is eager to see measures enacted that induce large-scale switching as rapidly as possible in order to achieve its vision of reduced-risk products. Only by switching a substantial number of adult smokers to less dangerous alternatives can Philip Morris International accomplish a meaningful public-health benefit. Philip Morris International believes that the correct combination of government leadership and private initiative will significantly speed efforts to reduce smoking’s health burden.
EXCLUSIVE INSIGHTS COMING SOON!
What are Philip Morris International key innovation segments?
What Technologies are Covered by Philip Morris International?
The chart below distributes patents filed by Philip Morris International in different countries on the basis of the technology protected in patents. It also represents the markets where Philip Morris International thinks it’s important to protect particular technology inventions.
R&D Focus: How Philip Morris International search focus changed over the years?
EXCLUSIVE INSIGHTS COMING SOON!