Signal in the noise C&EN and CAS examine the intellectual property behind the ‘K-beauty’ boom Long popular in South Korea, “BB creams”—trendy, all-in-one products meant to replace serum, moisturizer, primer, foundation, and sunblock— are now a fixture of drugstore shelves in Asia and the rest of the world. An analysis by CAS, a division of the American Chemical Society, reveals the intellectual property behind the explosion of this and other “K-beauty” products, which are a growing component of the more than $110 billion global skin care market. On a per capita basis during 2010–15, South Korea’s patenting in these areas was twice that of Japan, three times that of France, and five times that of the U.S.
2,722 Number of cosmetics-related patents originating from South Korea,
South Korea’s patenting activity continues to far outpace that of other major cosmeticproducing countries: The number of patents it produced in the first half of 2016 was 1.7 times as high as that of Japan, 3.6 times as high as that of France, and 3.5 times as high as that of the U.S. Patents in first half of 2016
281 South Korea 80 U.S.
161 Japan
78 France
2010–15, for personal care products, sunscreens, cosmeceuticals, cosmetic creams, cosmetic lotions, cosmetic powders, makeup, and dermatological agents.
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www.acs.org/ACSConnections SEPTEMBER 12, 2016 | CEN.ACS.ORG | C&EN
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