Most patents are owned by companies anyways – 90%!

Law Explorer, 2015, “Intellectual Property and Corporate Value,” https://lawexplores.com/intellectual-property-and-corporate-value/

In 1974, the number of utility patents granted was 76,278. By 2004, the number of patents granted more than doubled, to 164,293. Corporations were granted the vast majority of patents in 2004; foreign and domestic corporations received eighty-eight percent of the total number of patents granted. Interestingly, forty-four percent of patents are owned by U.S. corporations and forty-four percent are owned by foreign companies. Foreign and U.S. individuals combined received ten percent of all patents, with the remainder going to U.S. and foreign governments. The 2004 distribution of patent ownership has remained largely unchanged for the past ten years (see ).