Rakuten Receives FY2015 Intellectual Property Achievement Award

Tokyo, April 17, 2015 - Rakuten, Inc. today announced that it has received the “Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office Award” at today’s “FY2015 Intellectual Property Achievement Awards” ceremony, hosted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan (METI), and the Japan Patent Office.

The Intellectual Property Achievement Awards^*1 are presented by METI and the Japan Patent Office to individuals and companies in recognition of their contributions to the expansion and development of the intellectual property rights system in Japan. Rakuten received the award as a “Good-standing Company Utilizing the Intellectual Property Rights System”, and is the first company in the e-commerce field to receive the award. 

In the Internet industry, where technological innovation advances so rapidly, the fast acquisition of intellectual property rights is vital for businesses. In its core business of e-commerce, such as its online marketplace Rakuten Ichiba, Rakuten has worked to heighten staff consciousness of intellectual property-related issues and bolster its intellectual property-related systems. Additionally, through proactive and efficient patent applications, Rakuten has enjoyed a high level of success in obtaining patents for business models — something that is generally considered difficult to achieve. As it continues its global expansion, Rakuten is also utilizing a range of international intellectual property rights systems in order to quickly and smoothly obtain patents overseas, and is also proactively promoting intellectual property policies in its group companies. Rakuten believes it received the award because of its contributions to technological innovation in the Internet industry through such intellectual property-related initiatives.

Rakuten is committed to technological development and the provision of services in line with its basic business philosophy which calls for “the empowerment of individuals and society through the Internet.” Rakuten will continue to contribute to the overall advancement of the Internet industry through the pursuit of technological development relating to the expansion of both its domestic and overseas services.

^*1 There are two categories of Intellectual Property Achievement Award: “award for a contributor related to the intellectual property rights system,” which is presented to individuals, and “award for a good-standing company utilizing the intellectual property rights system,” which is presented to companies. The awards are presented by the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office respectively.