Japan's deficit in the balance of payments related to intellectual property has plummeted about 85 percent over the past decade, as more Japanese companies move to develop new technologies to enhance competitiveness.
In 1992, Japan received 390 billion yen in intellectual property revenues -- or royalties on patents, trademarks and copyrights.
In 2001, the revenues rocketed to 1.25 trillion yen. But the amount Japan paid to other countries for using patents and other properties increased only slightly over the decade, resulting in a deficit of 80 billion yen that year and marking a sharp decline from a deficit of 520 billion yen in 1992.