WIPO International Bureau announced that the total PCT filings had reached the one million mark by the end of 2004.It took 18 years for PCT applications to reach 250,000 from 1978. And the PCT applications in creased rapidly during the past 8 years, it used only four years to reach 500,000, and another four to double the number to one million.

On 14 January 2005, WIPO International Bureau hosted a ceremony at the WIPO Headquarter in Geneva to commemorated this meaningful milestone. At this ceremony, representatives from corporations include Matsushita Electrical Industrial Co. Ltd, Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V., The Procter & Gamble Company, Nokia, Huawei Technologies Co.,Ltd and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd spoke about their experiences with the PCT. Participators also discussed the future of the PCT system in a roundtable.