Overall rank by patents
#163
Across all tracked assignees
USPTO PatentsView assignee record - 2,351 granted patents across 87 technology areas, active 2015–2025. Filing-trend and competitive-moat analysis cross-referenced to USPTO Patent Public Search. Primary class: G06Q (INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE,).
The verdict
ebay holds 2,351 US patents across 87 technology areas, rank #163 of 50,000 tracked assignees.
Ebay Inc. has been granted 2,351 US utility patents between 2015 and 2025, placing Ebay Inc. at rank #163 across all assignees tracked by PlainPatent. This portfolio spans 87 distinct Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) subclasses, averaging 19.0 claims per patent with primary concentration in G06Q (INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE,). As a US Corporation, Ebay Inc. is one of the broader-portfolio assignees in the PatentsView dataset. By volume, ebay sits between ABB Schweiz Ag (2,472 patents, rank #159) and Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft (2,307 patents, rank #167) - the closest US assignees by grant volume. The composite Innovation Score of 69.1/100 blends portfolio volume, filing velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth into a single comparable measure drawn directly from USPTO PatentsView records.
Filing cadence tells the strategic story. Between 2020 and 2025 the company received 1,286 grants, compared with 1,065 in the 2015–2019 window, a +21% shift in five-year velocity. Steady filing volume suggests sustained innovation without dramatic pivots. The US Corporation classification further shapes interpretation, since corporate, government, and individual filers pursue patents for materially different reasons.
Claim depth and technology breadth together indicate competitive posture. Ebay Inc.'s 19.0 average claims per patent sits within the typical range for solid legal coverage without excessive prosecution cost, while a multi-domain presence across 87 subclasses balances depth with breadth. Combined with portfolio volume, these signals let analysts, investors, and licensing professionals benchmark Ebay Inc. against peers pursuing similar technology classes.
Granted US patents 2015–2025 versus its nearest-ranked assignees by volume, this company marked ◀
ABB Schweiz AG
2,472 patents
Futurewei Technologies, Inc.
2,455 patents
Chengdu BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.
2,399 patents
Lenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.
2,375 patents
eBay Inc.
2,351 patents
Siemens Healthcare Limited
2,329 patents
NIKON CORPORATION
2,316 patents
Eaton Intelligent Power Limited
2,308 patents
VOLKSWAGEN AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
2,307 patents
What this shows Ebay holds 2,351 patents at rank #163, shown against the 8 assignees closest to it in grant volume rather than the industry's largest filers.
By rank, the assignees closest to #163 in granted patent volume.
Other assignees with the most granted patents in Ebay's primary technology class.
ebay's Innovation Score vs. every tracked assignee
Composite of portfolio volume, filing velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth (0–100)
69 Top 1% higher than 99% of 50,000 US assignees
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US assignees. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source USPTO PatentsView, PlainPatent Innovation Score · 2015–2025
Teal-shaded recent years (2020–present) versus the 2015–2019 baseline. Full figures in the table below.
| Year | Patents Granted | Share of Period |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 181 | 7.7% |
| 2016 | 176 | 7.5% |
| 2017 | 220 | 9.4% |
| 2018 | 223 | 9.5% |
| 2019 | 265 | 11.3% |
| 2020 | 243 | 10.3% |
| 2021 | 267 | 11.4% |
| 2022 | 239 | 10.2% |
| 2023 | 273 | 11.6% |
| 2024 | 166 | 7.1% |
| 2025 | 98 | 4.2% |
Top 15 of 87 technology areas
Overall rank by patents
#163
Across all tracked assignees
69.1 out of 100
How to use this portfolio
ebay's 2,351 grants land it in the top 1% by Innovation Score, but volume alone doesn't tell you where the strength sits.
Patent counts and the Innovation Score measure patenting activity, not commercial success or the legal strength of any patent. Many patents are filed defensively. Verify the status of an individual patent against official USPTO records.
Every figure on PlainPatent is rendered directly from USPTO source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on USPTO source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 2026.