Patent Data Center

What Patent Data Center does

PDC, Inc. (株式会社PDC, formerly Patent Data Center) is a privately held Tokyo-based diversified services company founded in 1961 that operates across two principal divisions: Intellectual Property Information Services and Life Cycle Support. The company has been continuously involved with the Japan Patent Office and the broader Japanese IP ecosystem for over 60 years, providing patent examination document database development, technical document translation, document digitization (BoxScan) and AI-powered document processing (Document Force combining AI-OCR with generative AI), audiobook production for IP law examination preparation, and related services under ISMS and Privacy Mark certified information security controls.

The Life Cycle Support division extends the company beyond its IP heritage into recruitment services (Egak Career targeting 20-30 year-old professionals and Legal Work Career Change for legal/administrative professionals, both operating on success-fee economics), English-language education (Kids Duo afterschool childcare, Child Eyes tutoring, HALLO programming education), the Jump-Start! iOS English-learning mobile application using a proprietary chunked-audio methodology, and Ebisu Care senior housing referral. The company's revenue model blends transaction-based BPO volume pricing (BoxScan per-page/unit fees), success-fee recruitment (corporate clients pay only on placement), subscription audiobook/app monetization, and direct enterprise sales for IP services.

Distribution runs through direct enterprise sales for institutional IP and BPO clients, self-service digital platforms for individual recruitment users, and the iOS App Store for the Jump-Start! app. As of April 2026 the company employed 193 staff across two Tokyo offices (Toranomon headquarters and Toyoko office), led by President Kimura Junta following a June 2025 succession. PDC holds no disclosed external funding, operates exclusively within Japan's Kanto region, and has no parent company.

Name

Patent Data Center

Legal name

株式会社ＰＤＣ

Website

https://pdc.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1961

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

PDC, Inc. is a Tokyo-based company founded in 1961 providing intellectual property information services for the Japan Patent Office, AI-OCR document digitization BPO, specialized recruitment for legal and early-career professionals, and English-learning and education services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Intellectual Property Information Services

NAICS

Document Preparation Services (56141)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Patent Prosecution & Portfolio Management (BPAHAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Database Build, Migration & Master Data Management (MDM) Support (BPAAAKAJ)

Keywords

• Intellectual property services
• Document digitization
• Patent translation
• Recruitment services
• English language learning

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Intellectual Property Information Services: Patent translation, patent information database services, and patent-related solutions for the Japan Patent Office and related organizations. Established 60+ years ago with deep expertise in IP sector.
2. Document Digitization / BPO Services (Box Scan): Document scanning, OCR processing, data entry, and document management outsourcing services. Pricing based on volume, page count, and service specifications.
3. Recruitment Services (えがくキャリア, リーガルワーク転職): Career change support and job placement services. えがくキャリア targets 20-30 year olds for mid-career transitions; リーガルワーク転職 serves legal and administrative professionals. Services are free for job seekers, with companies paying for successful placements.
4. Education Services: Kids Duo (afterschool English daycare), Child Eyes (tutoring), HALLO (programming education), and Jump-Start! English learning app. Classroom-based education at physical locations plus app-based learning.
5. Audiobook Production and Distribution: Production and distribution of audiobook content including the Japan Institute of Invention and Promotion's intellectual property law collection audiobook for弁、理師試験 preparation.
6. Translation Services: Technical document translation services specializing in intellectual property and science/technology materials, leveraging 60+ years of translation expertise.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

PDC provides intellectual property information services including patent translation, patent document database development, document digitization outsourcing (BoxScan), and AI-OCR × generative AI document processing (Document Force), built on 60+ years of work with the Japan Patent Office. The company also runs a Lifecycle Support division offering career change services (Egaku Career, Legal Work Recruitment), English and programming education (Kids Duo, Child Eyes, HALLO, Jump-Start! app), and a senior housing referral service (Ebisu Care).

Product overview

PDC, Inc. (株式会社ＰＤＣ) operates a diversified portfolio of services organized under two main divisions: Intellectual Property Information Services (知的財産情報サービス) and Lifecycle Support (ライフサイクルサポート). The core IP services include Document Force (AI-OCR × generative AI document automation), BoxScan (document digitization/BPO), Translation, and Audiobooks. The Lifecycle Support division includes career recruitment services (Egak Career for young professionals, Legal Work Recruitment for legal/administrative professionals), education businesses (Kids Duo English childcare, Child Eyes tutoring, HALLO programming education), and the Jump-Start! English learning mobile app. Founded in 1961 and incorporated in 1969, the company leverages over 60 years of experience in IP-related services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Box Scan: Document information digitization service for electronic document conversion and outsourcing
• えがくキャリア (Egaku Career)
• リーガルワーク転職 (Legal Work Career Change)
• えびすケア (Ebisu Care)
• Jump-Start!
• Document Force

Quantifiable outcome

• えがくキャリア achieves 95% post-placement retention rate
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability8 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Japan Patent Office (特許庁/JPO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnership for patent examination document database development and related intellectual property initiatives. PDC has been involved since founding in 1961 in developing patent examination reference materials based on Japan Patent Office policies.
• Japan Institute of Invention and Innovation (公社)発明協会[JIII]coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on intellectual property information services and related initiatives. PDC operates under guidance and cooperation of various organizations including this institute.
• Japan Institute of Invention and Promotion (一社)inventment推進協会[JIPII]coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for audiobook content production. PDC serves as audiobook publisher releasing intellectual property law collection content for弁、理師試験 preparation.
• Japan Patent Information Organization (一財)日本特許情報機構[Japio]coreTechnology or IntegrationCollaboration on patent information database services and related IP information systems.
• Pasona Group (パーソルキャリア株式会社)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPDC received both BEST CONSULTANT and BEST AGENT awards at doda Valuable Partner Award 2025 from approximately 650 competing agencies, indicating a strong operational partnership in the recruitment sector.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• WDB Holdings: Japanese staffing and HR services company with scientific and technical placements. Comparable to PDC's Legal Work Recruitment and Egaku Career services in the Japanese recruitment market.
• Info Mart Corporation: Japanese B2B platform for document exchange and back-office automation, broadly comparable to enterprise document workflow services overlapping with PDC's BoxScan and Document Force customer base.

Direct peers

• AI inside Inc. Japanese AI-OCR specialist behind DX Suite, serving 30,000+ enterprises and government agencies. Most direct comparable to PDC's Document Force AI-OCR product, targeting the same Japanese digitization market.
• FRONTEO Inc. Japanese AI company specializing in legal and intellectual property analytics, with KIBIT and Loovoo product suites. Comparable to PDC's IP services and Translation offerings, serving Japanese law firms and enterprises.

Broad incumbents

• Transcosmos Inc. Large Japanese BPO company offering contact center, data entry, and digital marketing services. Overlaps with PDC's BoxScan and document processing service lines as part of a much broader BPO portfolio.
• Dai Nippon Printing (DNP): Major Japanese printing conglomerate with growing digital transformation, BPO, and information security offerings. Comparable to PDC's enterprise document digitization and IP database services as part of a diversified portfolio.
• Bellsystem24 Holdings: Japanese BPO and contact center leader with document processing and digital transformation services. Comparable to PDC's BPO service line as part of a much larger BPO+CRM platform.
• Toppan Holdings (Toppan Inc.): Massive Japanese printing and digital services conglomerate with extensive document digitization, BPO, and security printing businesses. Overlaps with PDC's BoxScan and Document Force offerings as part of a broader portfolio.
• Sansan Inc. Japanese cloud-based business card and document digitization platform serving enterprises. Comparable to PDC's BoxScan in serving Japanese corporate document digitization needs, though focused on business cards and contracts.

Others

• Persol Holdings: One of Japan's largest recruitment and HR services groups, parent of Persol Career (which operates doda). PDC has a strategic operating partnership with this group as evidenced by doda Valuable Partner Awards.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Patent Data Center