6G Non-Terrestrial Network Patent Landscape 2026
Samsung Electronics holds an extraordinary dominant position in 6G non-terrestrial network (NTN) patenting, accounting for the vast majority of activity among the largest filers. The field is in a rapid growth phase, with multi-year filing volumes expanding dramatically from a near-zero base, though annual activity eased from its 2023 peak and the most recent periods remain understated by publication lag.
Samsung leads an exceptionally concentrated field
Samsung Electronics ranks first by a margin that is virtually without parallel in mature technology landscapes, accumulating 628 patent families — more than forty times the output of the next-ranked filer. AT&T Intellectual Property I L P and AT&T Mobility II LLC follow distantly in second and third place with 15 and 14 patent families respectively.
The top five filers collectively account for 89% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers, signaling an extreme concentration of intellectual property in a single incumbent. Below Samsung, challengers cluster tightly between two and fifteen patent families, with no credible second tier yet formed.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | 628 | |
| 2 | AT&T INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY I L P | 15 | |
| 3 | AT&T MOBILITY II LLC | 14 | |
| 4 | Geely Automobile Institute (Ningbo) Co., Ltd. | 4 | |
| 5 | Jiangsu University | 4 | |
| 6 | INHA UNIV RES & BUSINESS FOUNDATION | 4 | |
| 7 | Nokia Technologies OY | 3 | |
| 8 | Southeast University | 3 | |
| 9 | China Telecom Digital Intelligence Technology Co., Ltd. | 3 | |
| 10 | The 54th Research Institute of China Electronics Technology Group Corporation | 2 |
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Intel Corporation | 2 | |
| 12 | Shi Hang | 2 | |
| 13 | Kratos Integral Holdings LLC | 2 | |
| 14 | Beihang University | 2 | |
| 15 | Narmadha R | 1 | |
| 16 | K. Madheswaran | 1 | |
| 17 | Madhankumar C | 1 | |
| 18 | Pravin Kumar S K | 1 | |
| 19 | S. Geetha Priyadharisini | 1 | |
| 20 | SwiftLink Technologies Inc. | 1 |
Samsung’s position implies that any entrant seeking to operate in 6G NTN wireless protocols — particularly H04W-class network architecture — will face a dense prior-art landscape owned almost entirely by one party. For R&D strategists, the practical implication is that differentiation must seek adjacent technical claims or cross-licensing paths.
Filing counts for 2024–2026 are understated due to the typical 18–24 month lag between filing and publication; apparent softening in those years reflects this lag, not a real contraction in activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Explosive multi-year growth, wireless protocols dominating the technology mix
Two structural features define this field: a filing trend that went from negligible to triple-digit annual volumes in under five years, and a technology composition that is overwhelmingly concentrated in wireless network standards (H04W). Together these charts frame both the opportunity and the crowding risk.
Annual filing trend
Filings were essentially zero before 2020, reached 162 in 2022, and peaked at 245 in 2023 — representing a 1,259% increase in the recent three-year window relative to the prior three-year window. Counts for 2024 (150) and 2025 (90) are materially understated by publication lag and should not be read as a decline; 2026 (5) is virtually uncounted for the same reason.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H04W (Wireless communication networks) is the dominant branch, reflecting that the primary patent activity concerns network protocol design for satellite and aerial platforms. H04B (Transmission) and H04L (Digital information transmission) are secondary. Branches such as G01S (Radar/positioning), B64C (Aeroplanes), G06N (AI models), and B64U (Drones) each represent less than 4% of records, revealing that physical-layer sensing, platform engineering, and AI-driven network management remain comparatively sparse.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Technique and apparatus for managing mobility of t…
The present disclosure relates to a 5<sup>th </sup>generation (5G) or 6<sup>th </sup>generation (6G) communication system for supporting a data rate higher than a 4<sup>th </sup>generation (4G) communication system such as long term evolution (LTE). The present disclosure provides a satellite communication cell management apparatus for managing satellite… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Facilitation of dynamic edge computations for 6g o… | 153 |
| 2 | Methods and apparatus for store and forward in NTN… | 14 |
| 3 | Facilitating dynamic satellite and mobility conver… | 12 |
| 4 | Method and apparatus for wireless communication us… | 10 |
| 5 | Communication method and device in wireless commun… | 10 |
| 6 | 一种面向6G的空天地一体化网络架构及实现方法 | 10 |
| 7 | Virtual tracking or registration areas for non ter… | 10 |
| 8 | Methods and apparatuses to handle PLMN list | 9 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the patent structure means for R&D investment decisions
The combination of a growth-stage lifecycle, extreme single-player concentration, and thin coverage in adjacent technical branches creates a distinctive investment landscape — high entry barriers in the core wireless protocol layer, but real whitespace in platform, sensing, and AI integration.
Early Growth — field is expanding rapidly from a near-zero base
The lifecycle stage is classified as Growth, with a 1,259% increase in filings across the recent three-year window versus the prior three-year window. Annual volume peaked in 2023 at 245 patent families and has eased since, but this reflects both a natural post-peak moderation and ongoing publication lag in the most recent years. The field is still years from saturation at the standard-setting layer.
Lifecycle: GrowthSingle-player dominance at a level rarely seen in emerging standards
The top five filers hold 89% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers, and Samsung Electronics alone accounts for 628 patent families versus 15 for the second-ranked filer. This degree of concentration in a pre-commercial standard is unusual and signals that Samsung is pursuing a standards-essential patent strategy analogous to Qualcomm’s in 3G/4G. New entrants must assess freedom-to-operate carefully before committing to protocol-layer R&D.
Highly ConcentratedLimited cross-organization co-filing; AT&T entities are the most active co-filers
The most active collaboration pair is AT&T Intellectual Property I L P and AT&T Mobility II LLC, which co-filed on 14 patent families — effectively an intra-group relationship. Jiangsu University and Geely Automobile Institute (Ningbo) co-filed on 4 families, representing a rare industry-academia link. Samsung Electronics and Beijing Samsung Telecom R&D Center share 1 co-filed family. Southeast University and the 54th Research Institute of China Electronics Technology Group also recorded 1 joint filing. Cross-organization collaboration outside these pairs is essentially absent, suggesting the ecosystem is still siloed.
Low Cross-Org CollaborationEurope (EPO) and WIPO lead filings; U.S. and China are secondary hubs
Europe (EPO) leads jurisdiction coverage with 250 patent records, closely followed by WIPO (PCT) at 247 — indicating that applicants are prioritizing broad international protection routes. The United States accounts for 100 records, China for 56, and India for 27. South Korea and the United Kingdom trail. The EPO/PCT dominance suggests filers expect commercial and regulatory activity to be centered in Europe and international standards bodies first.
EPO & PCT LeadGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| AT&T知识产权一部有限合伙公司 | AT&T移动第二有限责任公司 | 14 |
| Jiangsu University | Geely Automobile Institute (Ningbo) Co., Ltd. | 4 |
| Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | Beijing Samsung Telecom R&D Center | 1 |
| Southeast University | The 54th Research Institute of China Electronics Technology Group Corporation | 1 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
Samsung Electronics versus a fragmented challenger tier
Samsung Electronics occupies a category of its own, with AT&T entities forming the nearest challenger grouping. All other filers are effectively emerging participants at this stage.
Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics holds 628 patent families and is accelerating rapidly, with its recent three-year filing rate running at 18× its prior three-year rate — the strongest momentum figure in the corpus. Its technology focus is concentrated in H04W 84 (594 families), H04W 48 (229 families), and H04W 8 (172 families), reflecting a comprehensive network-architecture strategy targeting NTN standard-essential positions. The co-filing relationship with Beijing Samsung Telecom R&D Center further signals coordinated global prosecution.
628 patent familiesAT&T (IP I L P + Mobility II LLC)
AT&T Intellectual Property I L P (15 patent families) and AT&T Mobility II LLC (14 patent families) are recorded as new entrants in the momentum data, with 5 recent families each in the tracked window. Their shared technology emphasis on H04B 7 (transmission) and H04W 28/36 (resource management and handover) suggests a carrier-side focus on NTN integration into existing mobile infrastructure, distinct from Samsung’s standards-layer approach.
15 + 14 patent families| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | 531 | ▲ 18× vs prior 3-yr |
| AT&T知识产权一部有限合伙公司 | 5 | ▲ new entrant |
| AT&T移动第二有限责任公司 | 5 | ▲ new entrant |
| 仁荷大学校产学协力团 | 4 | ▲ new entrant |
| Nokia Technologies OY | 3 | ▲ new entrant |
| China Telecom Digital Intelligence Technology Co., Ltd. | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
| Intel Corporation | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served branches adjacent to the dominant wireless protocol core
Four IPC branches sit at the edge of the current corpus with low record counts and low share, while each has plausible technical relevance to NTN architectures. These are observations of relative sparsity, not validated commercial opportunities.
G01S · Radar, Sonar & Positioning
With 25 patent records and a 2% share, integrated sensing and positioning for NTN platforms is notably sparse relative to the protocol-layer activity in H04W. Satellite-based NTN nodes are natural candidates for integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) — a 6G design target — yet the positioning and radar IP layer has seen minimal filing. An entrant with radar signal processing or GNSS-augmentation capability could pursue claims here with limited incumbent overlap, though standards bodies will ultimately shape what is essential IP.
Search this in Eureka →G06N · Computing Based on AI Models
Only 6 patent records cover AI-model-based computing in this corpus, representing a 1% share. AI-driven beam management, interference prediction, and dynamic spectrum allocation are active areas in 6G terrestrial research and directly applicable to NTN. The sparsity here may reflect that AI-for-NTN work is either filed under H04W subclasses or not yet filed at scale. Researchers with AI/ML for satellite network optimization could find this branch relatively open, with the caveat that Samsung’s H04W portfolio likely encompasses some AI-adjacent claims.
Search this in Eureka →How leaders differ by technology route across IPC branches
Route coverage across the main technology branches in the current evidence set.
| Player | H04W 84 · Wireless communication networks | H04W 48 · Wireless communication networks | H04W 8 · Wireless communication networks | H04W 76 · Wireless communication networks | H04B 7 · Transmission (general) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | Strong · 594 | Moderate · 229 | Moderate · 172 | Moderate · 161 | Emerging · 101 |
| AT&T Intellectual Property I, L.P. | Strong · 7 | Absent | Absent | Moderate · 4 | Strong · 11 |
| AT&T Mobility II LLC | Strong · 6 | Absent | Absent | Moderate · 4 | Strong · 10 |
| 仁荷大学校产学协力团 | Strong · 3 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Strong · 3 |
| Geely Automobile Institute (Ningbo) Co., Ltd. | Strong · 4 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Jiangsu University | Strong · 4 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Intel Corporation | Strong · 2 | Absent | Absent | Strong · 2 | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus covers 695 patent families. This is the total used for trend and lifecycle analysis; applicant rankings are based on patent family counts per filer.
Samsung Electronics leads with 628 patent families, more than forty times the output of the next-ranked filer (AT&T Intellectual Property I L P at 15 patent families). The top five filers together hold 89% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers.
Filings were negligible before 2020, rose sharply to 162 in 2022, and peaked at 245 in 2023 — a 1,259% increase over the prior three-year period. Counts for 2024 and 2025 are materially understated by publication lag and should not be interpreted as a real decline.
H04W (Wireless communication networks) is dominant, followed by H04B (Transmission) and H04L (Digital information transmission). Branches related to radar/positioning (G01S), aeronautical platforms (B64C), AI models (G06N), and antennas (H01Q) each have very few records, indicating sparse coverage in those areas.
Europe (EPO) leads with 250 records, closely followed by WIPO (PCT) with 247, then the United States (100), China (56), India (27), South Korea (11), and the United Kingdom (4). The EPO and PCT dominance indicates applicants are prioritizing broad international protection.
The most active co-filing relationship is between AT&T Intellectual Property I L P and AT&T Mobility II LLC (14 joint families), which is effectively intra-group. Jiangsu University and Geely Automobile Institute (Ningbo) co-filed on 4 families. Cross-organization collaboration outside these pairs is minimal, suggesting the ecosystem remains largely siloed.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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