Patent Office Granting More Patents Each Year
The backlog of patent applications before the Patent Office has dropped from 700,000 to 600,000 in only about a year. Director Kappos has really helped push the Patent Office to become quicker (about 4 months faster initial exams than two years ago) and more efficient in its examination of old and new cases. Not only has the backlog been reduced, but more applications are issuing as patents (yes, these are two different measurements). Dennis Crouch at Patently-O has created the following chart showing the marked rise in issuances in the past three years under Director Kappos’s hand: 
Great. Less time to examine, more patents that shouldn’t be issued because the technology was already in use some time ago.