Following the broad analysis “Smart Pruning: How Companies Strengthen Portfolios While Cutting Cost” , we take a closer look at the Semiconductor Industry. This industry has become a focal point of global attention. Governments and companies compete to secure supply chains and expand domestic production capacity. Billions of dollars are pouring into new fabrication plants as calls for technological independence grow. This capital-intensive sector is now under greater scrutiny. With R&D, manufacturing, and patent maintenance consuming vast resources, efficient, data-driven portfolio management is crucial for maintaining competitiveness and innovation focus. Recent analysis by LexisNexis® Intellectual Property Solutions shows how leading semiconductor companies, ranging from foundries to integrated device manufacturers and equipment suppliers, have reshaped their patent portfolios through pruning over the past five years. This blog reveals that the patent pruning decisions made by leading semiconductor companies closely align with objective indicators of patent quality. This raises a critical question: if quality differences are measurable early, why do most organizations wait more than a decade before acting? The findings show that semiconductor companies prune their patents more selectively than those in the Techplatforms & Software sector. Still, the same pattern appears: pruning strongly correlates with measurable patent quality indicators. We analyzed 12 global semiconductor companies—Intel, Qualcomm, MediaTek, NXP, STMicroelectronics, Applied Materials, TSMC, Infineon, ASML, NVIDIA, SK Hynix, and Micron Technology. Around 13.4% of active patent families filed between 2009 and 2017 and in force as of 2020 have been discontinued by mid-2025.
Global annuity fees for all active semiconductor patent families in the test set amounts to roughly US $4.3 billion. This includes US $296 million due in 2026. With these costs, strategic patent pruning is far from an administrative exercise. These decisions occur against the backdrop of accelerating innovation in gate-all-around transistors, advanced packaging, and power semiconductors for electric mobility. These are the areas that increasingly define the competitive edge of the semiconductor industry.
Figure 1. Portfolio size comparison of test set (2020 vs 2025) of leading semiconductor companies
Intel stands out as the most active in strategic patent pruning, reducing its patent portfolio by 21.7%. This is a higher rate than peers such as Qualcomm (17.6%), MediaTek (17.2%), or NXP (15.7%). The remaining portfolios are now more focused on patents with higher measured impact. Although we lack visibility into the decision-making processes, it appears that less influential assets were more often selected for discontinuation.
A closer look at quality tiers reveals a consistent pattern across the sector. Using Competitive Impact—a measure combining technology relevance (citations from subsequent patents) and market coverage (breadth of protection)— patents were grouped into ten quality deciles.
Across all semiconductor leaders, strategic patent pruning is heaviest at the lower end of the portfolio. It is moderate in the middle and minimal at the top. Intel discontinued 32% of its lowest-quality patents (deciles 1–3) but only 15% of its highest-quality ones (deciles 8–10). Qualcomm and MediaTek show similar selectivity, with pruning rates above 39% in the lowest deciles and below 13% in the top group.
Table 1. Pruning rates by patent quality decile (2020–2025)
These patterns show a strong correlation between pruning activity and measured patent quality. Patents with lower Competitive Impact values were discontinued more frequently. Those with higher values were generally retained. This alignment suggests that patent strength—as captured by objective metrics—mirrors internal value assessments, even if such data were not explicitly used in decision-making.
The financial implications are considerable. If other semiconductor companies matched Intel’s pruning intensity of 21.7%, potential lifetime savings could range from US $8 million for MediaTek to US $76 million for TSMC.
Figure 2. Savings potential compared to Intel’s pruning rate (in millions of US dollars)
Not all semiconductor firms can or should match Intel’s intensity due to different business models, strategies, and technology scopes. However, even moderate pruning alignment could release tens of millions in annuity savings annually. These funds could be redirected toward maintaining higher value patents longer and in more markets. Or companies could look at patent acquisitions in emerging segments such as power semiconductors and AI accelerators. Similar patterns observed in technology platforms indicate that semiconductor leaders are following a comparable trajectory. To explore how a data-driven approach could benefit your own portfolio, speak with our team about a customized pruning assessment.
To determine whether pruning improves portfolio composition rather than simply reducing size, LexisNexis developed the Portfolio Improvement Index. The Portfolio Improvement Index measures how the share of high-quality patents (top three deciles) changes relative to weaker ones (bottom three deciles). It indicates that pruning outcomes often coincide with an increased share of stronger patents. While there is no evidence that companies intentionally used quality indicators to guide decisions, their portfolio changes align with measurable improvements in overall patent composition.
Figure 3. Portfolio Improvement Index of leading semiconductor companies
MediaTek’s portfolio shows the most pronounced improvement, with a 13.1% rise in the share of high-quality patents. This indicates a strong correlation between pruning activity and measured quality distribution. Intel and Qualcomm also show positive results in the Portfolio Improvement Index. This suggests that pruning led to portfolios now weighted more towards higher-impact assets.
The semiconductor study confirms that the same relationship observed in the technology and software sectors applies here. The study shows that patent pruning activity aligns closely with patent quality indicators. Intel’s high pruning intensity mirrors IBM’s earlier position in the software domain. This underscores a recurring pattern across industries: measurable patent quality offers useful insight into how portfolios evolve over time. The analysis cannot determine when or why companies decide to discontinue specific assets. The data indicates that many patents remain active for more than a decade before being pruned. Earlier, data-informed portfolio reviews could therefore help organizations focus resources sooner and reduce cost exposure. Overall, major semiconductor portfolios increasingly show a balance between quantity and measured impact. The decision processes remain unclear. Evidence shows stronger portfolios form when weaker assets are trimmed, and high-impact patents kept. With rising annuity costs, small efficiency gains can free significant budgets without comprising innovation coverage.
This analysis is the third of LexisNexis Intellectual Property Solutions’ ongoing Global Pruning study. We started with a broad analysis with Portfolio Pruning: Unlocking Innovation Value. We will examine portfolio optimization across 11 industries. You can read the analysis on Software companies here. For IP professionals, the findings highlight the value of integrating objective quality analytics into ongoing portfolio management. Regularly assessing patent strength can help identify assets that no longer contribute to core competitiveness. The assessment can also reveal areas of emerging technological relevance. Monitoring where strategic patent pruning activity concentrates across peers also provides early signals of shifting R&D priorities. By integrating patent quality data with financial and strategic factors, IP teams can make smarter renewal decisions. This approach helps align portfolios more closely with long-term innovation goals.
What efficiencies are hidden within your patent portfolio? Discover how data-driven patent portfolio pruning can strengthen your IP position and free resources for future innovation.
The Innovation Momentum 2025: The Global Top 100 report celebrates the top 100 companies that are breaking boundaries and setting new benchmarks in technology and industry through visionary advancements.
