Assessing technological trends through patent landscaping: The case of Bitcoin

Abstract

With the appearance and the growing attention obtained by Bitcoin worldwide, the demand for cryptocurrencies based on blockchain technology is being driven forward at a great speed. Therefore, given the rapid valuation and strong price volatility of Bitcoin in combination with the huge potential for expansion that cryptocurrencies are expected to hold, the ability to develop technologies to help users and financial institutions carrying out transactions based on Bitcoins is also highly sought. To improve understanding of the technological trends associated with the recent valuation explosion of Bitcoin, this study assesses patent filing patterns associated with Bitcoin-based technologies. More specifically, this study provides robust empirical evidence pointing out that the recent increased visibility of Bitcoin also motivated a strong increase in patent filings addressing technologies related to Bitcoin, thereby turning this particular cryptocurrency into a technological hotspot. Additionally, we present evidence that most Bitcoin technologies address data processing issues, rather than electric signal processing, or hardware technologies. Another relevant finding concerns the geographical concentration of patent applications, as the majority of applicants are based in highly heterogeneous countries, such as United States, China, and South Korea.