China to Comprehensively Strengthen IPR Protection and Effectively Protect Legitimate Rights and Interests of Market Entities

The recent State Council executive meeting made arrangement to strengthen IPR protection and effectively protect legitimate rights and interests of various market entities. The meeting pointed out that it was imperative to strengthen law enforcement regarding intellectual property and protect legitimate rights and interests of various market entities without discrimination. Many experts said that China's continued strengthening of intellectual property protection was conducive to optimizing the business environment, promoting scientific and technological innovation and deepening international cooperation.

Data show that in the first half of 2019, China achieved comprehensive law enforcement in patent and trademark, investigating and solving 6,529 cases of patent infringement and counterfeiting, as well as 11,500 cases of trademark violations. China continued to strengthen IPR protection through a series of measures such as prioritizing special campaigns of law enforcement, promoting the establishment of a coordinated protection system, strengthening the capacity building of law enforcement and protection of various areas, and strengthening international cooperation in this regard.

Latest data released by the National Intellectual Property Administration of China (CNIPA) show that in the first half of 2019, the number of foreign patent applications in China reached 78,000, up by 8.6% year-on-year; foreign trademark applications in China totaled 127,000, up by 15.4% year-on-year. Such a sustained and steady growth of foreign applications for patents and trademarks in China shows the international community's confidence in China's intellectual property protection.

The recent State Council executive meeting pointed out that law enforcement of intellectual property should be continuously strengthened, and that legitimate rights and interests of market entities should be protected without discrimination. Cui Fan, professor of the School of International Trade and Economics of the University of International Business and Economics, believed that this was in line with relevant regulations of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

In addition, the executive meeting proposed to strengthen IPR protection going forward, including continuously strengthening law enforcement and protecting legitimate rights and interests of various market entities, which should be treated equally; push forward the revision of the patent law and copyright law, the new round of overhaul of the trademark law, and the revision of rules for implementation of the patent law and regulation on the protection of new varieties of plants, so as to greatly increase the cost of illegal activities. In the decision to amend the trademark law announced on April 23 this year, the maximum damages for malicious infringement of the exclusive right to use a trademark was increased to five times, which was among the most serious punishment in the world.

Relevant officials of the CNIPA said that in the future, it would promote the introduction of policies and documents on intellectual property protection, further guide law enforcement of patent and trademark, intensify law enforcement and case handling to crack down on patent infringement, and create a better environment for innovation and business.

October 13, 2019

Source: CRI Online

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