S&Z becomes the top filer of South African patents
In September 2021, S&Z became the largest filer of South African patents, capturing more than 27% of the South African complete patent market. October 2021 saw S&Z file 297 patents, increasing its market share to 31%. November saw S&Z increase its filings to +500 patents per month, representing nearly 50% of the South African market. S&Z filings exceeded 630 patents in January 2022. S&Z growth in patent filings is largely due to its partnership with GlobalIPCo – a developer of online filing systems.
| Firm | SA complete patents filed during September 2021 |
| Sibanda & Zantwijk | 259 |
| Firm A | 215 |
| Firm B | 151 |
| Firm C | 64 |
| Firm D | 48 |
| Firm E | 41 |
| Firm F | 32 |
| Firm G | 26 |
| Firm H | 21 |
| Firm I | 16 |
| Firm J | 14 |
| Firm K | 12 |
GlobalIPCo System
S&Z is the exclusive South African agent of GlobalIPCo – a provider of IP filing and management services. The GlobalIPCo system enables S&Z to manage large volumes of patents with low administrative overheads, thereby significantly reducing the cost of South African patents.
Expansion into other countries
During 2022 / 2023, the GlobalIPCo system will expand into other African countries / regions (namely, Nigeria, OAPI and ARIPO) with the goal of increasing the patent volumes in these territories.
Efficiency
The GlobalIPCo system not only reduces patent costs, it also reduces the time to courier the registered patent certificate by improving efficiencies throughout the patenting process.
New market
Instead of growing by taking market share from other South African patent law firms, S&Z’s growth is based on new filings from new markets. As a result, S&Z’s patent filings have increased the total number of South African patent applications by more than 25%.