Intellectual Property

Policies and Concepts

Approach to Intellectual Property Activities

The NTT Group, which engages in R&D, from basic to applied, in a wide range of technological fields, has accumulated intellectual property investments (R&D investments) over the years as a telecommunications operator that are unparalleled around the globe.
The NTT Group has established an Activity Policy to provide security and safety and support the growth of the NTT Group's businesses as they continue to take on the challenge of creating new value and contributing to the sustainability of the planet. It promotes the formulation of an intellectual property strategy and appropriate protections for the intellectual property gained from our investments, all while respecting the intellectual property of others.

Organization for Implementation

The NTT Group's Intellectual Property Management Organization

As the NTT Group's core organization for managing intellectual property, the NTT Intellectual Property Center takes into account medium-term viewpoints in accordance with corporate strategy as it creates management policies shared across the NTT Group, cooperates with the intellectual property departments of each Group company through the NTT Group Intellectual Property Management Council, and works to realize management conducted through repeated sharing of information and discussion.

Liaisons under this Council that specialize in legal systems and work involving intellectual property have also been established to work to establish governance and reduce business risk by sharing trends, as well as thoughts on their effects and possible countermeasures with regards to reforms of domestic and international systems, examples of conflicts, and examples of court decisions.

The NTT Group's Intellectual Property Management Organization

Targets and Performance

Sustainability Indicators

Boundary：NTT(Non-consolidated)

Comparison of SDGs-related Patents Held by the NTT Group and 3 Other Industry Groups ^*1

Many of the patents held by the NTT Group are those related to SDGs. The Group is constructing a patent portfolio that contributes to each goal of SDGs. For Goal 7 (affordable and clean energy) and Goal 9 (industry, innovation, and infrastructure) in particular, it includes various patents for advanced technologies such as IOWN and 5G/6G.

^※1Created based on data current as of July 2026 from PatentSight®, a patent analysis tool provided by LexisNexis.

^※2An indicator for the competitive advantage and overall value of a patent portfolio. Calculated based on quantitative and qualitative indices.

IOWN All-Photonics Network Technology and Sustainability

The All-Photonics Network technology that sustains the core of the IOWN concept drives forward proofs of concept co-created by operating companies together with customers, accelerating initiatives aimed toward social implementation. This technology contributes to dramatically increased energy efficiency and reduction of CO2 emissions, making possible declines in the overall environmental impact of ICT infrastructure. Not only does this help NTT contribute to the realization of a carbon-neutral society, it also works towards the construction of a foundation capable of sustainable growth from an ESG management perspective.

NTT Laboratories promote research and development of the constituent technologies that act as the core of this All-Photonics Network technology. With regards to research results, we take into account future international standardization and operating company business strategy as we create innovations and secure rights for the purpose of leading safe and secure business expansion and the market competitiveness of businesses.

(As of August 2025)

AI and Sustainability

AI is expected to play a role in resolving a variety of social issues, such as addressing labor shortages, improving work environments, and increasing productivity. It is also expected to contribute to realizing a sustainable society.
The NTT Group continues to research and develop a diverse range of technologies crucial for the effective implementation of AI, including lightweight and high-performance LLMs, digital twin technology, data integration platforms, and all-photonics networks. By developing these as intellectual property, we continue to strengthen our technological foundation.
For example, there is a strong complementary relationship between the strengths of industrial robotics manufacturers in areas such as robot control and drive control and the strengths of the NTT Group in supporting fundamental technologies, allowing us to leverage our strengths in physical AI.
Implementing appropriate security measures is also extremely important in safely and securely implementing AI throughout society. The NTT Group maintains a broad portfolio of patents in the technical fields necessary for realizing a reliable AI infrastructure, including learning and inference, RAG, system integration, authentication and authorization, and security.
We will leverage our competitive advantages backed by this intellectual property to promote co-creation with our customers and partner companies, in order to help implement AI that is both convenient and safe throughout society and to create new value.

Main Initiatives

Intellectual Property Strategy Formulation and Implementation

To achieve the Medium-Term Management Strategy, the NTT Intellectual Property Center formulates and implements an intellectual property strategy as part of a trifecta including both business and R&D strategies from the perspectives of (1) strategic acquisition, (2) risk management, and (3) utilization of intellectual properties held, based on the policies and concepts for intellectual property activities.

Initiatives to Respect Third-Party Intellectual Property Rights

When NTT Group companies use research and development technologies as a part of their business, investigations are conducted regarding the rights of others in Japan and overseas at all steps from initial research and development to offering such technology to group companies in order to keep from infringing on the intellectual property rights of third parties. By sharing Japanese and international revisions to systems, examples of disputes, legal precedents, and other intellectual property trends and their influences with group companies, we work to comply with intellectual property laws and regulations while reducing business risks.

Intellectual Property Education / Human Resources Training Initiatives

Initiatives to raise NTT Group employee awareness relating to intellectual property

The NTT Group conducts e-learning training, awareness-raising activities, and more for employees primarily through the intellectual property departments of each company in accordance with that company's unique characteristics.

From the perspective of the NTT Group as a whole, the NTT Intellectual Property Center has been holding a cross-Group comprehensive event known as IPR*-DAY since FY 2022, with the aim of elevating the level of interest in intellectual property among Group employees and helping them integrate this knowledge into their daily work.(*Intellectual Property Right)

IPR-DAY 2025, conducted December 2025, saw the participation of over 709 individuals from 69 Group companies, covering a diverse range of professions. In addition to invited lectures from external speakers, the day featured introductions of efforts from the NTT Intellectual Property Center and group companies where research and development, business, and intellectual property worked as one, further heightening our awareness of how to efficiently employ intellectual property within our work and business.
A website for Group employees opened by the NTT Intellectual Property Center also aims to raise employee awareness through regularly communicating basic knowledge, columns explaining news, and other information related to intellectual property.

Invention Incentive System

In accordance with the employee invention system stipulated in the Patent Act, each Group company has established an invention incentive system in order to increase incentives to create technologies, business-related ideas, and more that will act as future sources of business.

It is essential to continuously produce high-quality inventions in line with intellectual property strategy in order to maintain and expand a patent portfolio that contributes to sustained corporate value growth. By 1: Creating high-quality rights, 2: Actively applying rights, and 3: Motivating inventors through early incentives, the NTT Intellectual Property Center continuously creates and fosters high-quality inventions, putting in place systems that sustainably maintain a patent portfolio that is strong both in quality and quantity.

Patent portfolio management to increase corporate value

The Invention Incentive System plays a role in this. Based on the objectives of the Patent Act, the NTT Intellectual Property Center provides incentives for the creation of ideas as early as possible in order to promote cycles of creation that will lead to new ideas. This incentive system was revised in April 2024 and the new system began operating in 2025. These new systems use an AI model trained on past NTT patent usage data to evaluate the value of inventions and award incentives.
By making active use of rights to increase usage data and update this AI model, we will more efficiently move through the cycle of rights usage, early incentives, and the creation of new high-quality inventions, preserving this source of sustainable growth for the NTT Group.