WIPO ADR Highlights 2025

Record Demand for WIPO Out-of-Court IP Dispute Resolution Services

In 2025, the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (WIPO AMC) supported the administration of 1,461 disputes relating to intellectual property (IP), innovation, and technology, marking a 70% increase from 2024. Disputes under the WIPO Co-Administration Program with IP and Copyright Offices (which includes e-filing, case tracking, and online hearings tools, and staff training and guidance) grew by 87% compared to 2024. Cases administered under the WIPO Mediation and Arbitration Rules also increased by 42%. Together, these results highlight growing engagement with WIPO dispute resolution services.

The IP areas most frequently covered in disputes were copyright and digital content (71%), followed by trademarks (23%), with patents and other commercial matters accounting for the remaining cases. Parties involved in disputes included more than 1,500 SMEs, startups, creators, and innovators.

The disputes involved parties from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, and Oceania, and procedures were conducted in Chinese, English, French, German, Greek, Korean, Romanian, and Spanish.

Cases Administered under the WIPO Mediation and Arbitration Rules

In 2025, 410 disputes were administered under the WIPO Mediation, Arbitration and Expert Determination Rules, covering a variety of IP areas, with copyright and digital content (51%), trademarks (31%), and patents (9%) most frequently involved.

The disputes covered a diverse range of business sectors, with a notable concentration in the creative industries, including music, audiovisual and publishing sectors, as well as content-sharing platforms, artificial intelligence, video games, and esports. Other sectors represented included information and communication technology (notably SEP/FRAND and IoT), life sciences (biotechnology and pharmaceuticals), fashion and luxury goods, and research and development–related green technologies.

SMEs, including startups, creators, and innovators, accounted for 59% of the parties in dispute, an 18% increase from 2024. This was followed by large-sized companies (30%), and other entities such as collective management organizations, universities, and R&D centers.

WIPO Mediation and Arbitration Services for National Courts

The WIPO AMC administers cases referred to WIPO Mediation and Arbitration by national courts. Mediation can provide an effective option for cases pending before the courts, particularly where parties are open to settlement or require the expertise of a technical or scientific specialist. To support this, the WIPO AMC collaborates with a number of national and regional courts, notably in China, France, Mexico, Qatar, Spain, Tanzania, and Uzbekistan.

In 2025, the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Shanghai Service administered 68 mediations, marking a 42% increase compared to 2024. These international IP cases were referred to WIPO Mediation by the High People’s Courts in Shanghai, Fujian, Hainan, Guangdong, Chongqing, and Sichuan.

WIPO ADR Co-administration Program with IP and Copyright Offices

In 2025, the WIPO AMC supported the administration of 1,046 disputes under the Co-administration Program with IP and Copyright Offices, an 87% increase compared to 2024.

Copyright and digital content accounted for 80% of disputes and trademarks 20%. Parties included SMEs, creators and entrepreneurs (52%), collective management organizations (22%), large companies (20%), and others.

In 2025, the WIPO AMC continued to significantly expand its Co-Administration Program in response to growing interest from Member States. WIPO support includes e-filing, case tracking, online hearings, staff training, and ADR guidance to help IP and Copyright Offices manage disputes efficiently.

The Program is already operational or being developed with IP and Copyright Offices in Algeria, Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Kenya, Mexico, Namibia, Nigeria, Paraguay, Peru, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, and Uruguay. The Program is supported by the Funds-in-Trust established with the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST) of the Republic of Korea to promote ADR for copyright disputes.

Collaboration with Member State IP and Copyright Offices

In 2025, the WIPO AMC strengthened its collaboration with Member State IP and Copyright Offices, engaging in a range of initiatives related to ADR for IP and technology disputes. New partnerships were established with the National Service of Intellectual Rights (SENADI) of Ecuador, the Estonian Patent Office, the Patent Office of the Republic of Latvia, the National Institute for the Defense of Competition and Protection of Intellectual Property (INDECOPI) of Peru, the National Intellectual Property and Quality Service (SENAPIQ-STP) of Sao Tome and Principe, and the Patents and Companies Registration Agency (PACRA) of Zambia. In total, the WIPO AMC now works with more than 90 national IP and Copyright Offices.

WIPO Domain Name Case Filings Reach Record High in 2025

In 2025, the WIPO AMC administered 6,282 domain name cases filed by trademark owners, marking a 1.8% increase over 2024 and the busiest year since the start of this WIPO service 25 years ago. Overall, this brings us over 80,000 domain name cases (including over 70,000 gTLD cases, and nearly 10,000 ccTLD cases). 

This result demonstrates the growing relevance and effectiveness of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) in addressing cybersquatting and fraudulent activities involving domain names (e.g., phishing or fake invoices).

A comprehensive report on WIPO’s domain name dispute resolution services in 2025 is available.

WIPO ADR Outreach Activities

In 2025, the WIPO AMC carried out an extensive outreach program, participating in over 110 virtual and in-person events and involving some 13,000 registrants from 169 countries. These activities comprised a wide range of workshops and training sessions for SMEs, large enterprises, start-ups, entrepreneurs, inventors, creators, IP law firms, government officials, and other actors in the IP ecosystem.

WIPO AMC’s online presence also grew significantly. The WIPO AMC LinkedIn page grew to 28,000 followers; the ADR Highlights newsletter reached some 8,600 subscribers; the WIPOD – Arbitration and Mediation Matters podcast was streamed over 6,000 times; and the WIPO ADR Young initiative expanded to more than 3,000 members worldwide.