CHINA INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW NEWSLETTER
Vol. 2 , No. 7 - April 24 , 2001
CALL FOR FOREIGN ASSOCIATES TO REPRESENT CHINESE COMPANIES
INTA Annual Meeting 2001
May 5-9 - San Francisco |
Lehman, Lee & Xu will be hosting a delegation of Chinese brand owners to the INTA conference. These companies, which include China's premier multinational corporations, represent the first group of Chinese brand owners that have joined the association. These companies have asked Lehman, Lee & Xu to coordinate their overseas IP work. We, in turn, would like to hear from IP counsel from countries in Europe, North and South America, and elsewhere that would like to be considered for representation of these Chinese companies. Interested parties should send email to Edward Lehman at mail@chinalaw.cc to set up a meeting in San Francisco. We also welcome you to participate in the following: SUNDAY BRUNCH - May 6, 10:00am at the Mariott, Salon 7 Hosted by the China Trademark Association; Lehman, Lee & Xu; and the new China Corporate Members. Start off your Annual Meeting by experiencing Chinese hospitality at its finest and meeting company representatives from a wide range of industries, including financial services, securities, beverages, electronics, telecommunications, software, consumer goods, petrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals. CTA BOOTH - Exhibit Area across from Booths 10 and 11 Visit with representatives of the China Trademark Association; the Deputy Director of China's Trademark Review and Adjudication Board; Lehman, Lee & Xu; and in-house counsel of several China Brand Owners. On display will be information about these companies and their products and services, CTA, INTA's China recruitment effort, and general literature on China trademark law. |
TOPICS THIS ISSUE:
- Authors Succeed in China's Largest Copyright Case
- Patenting New Technologies
- China to Adopt International Standards on Imitations
- Patenting to Protect China's Cultural Heritage
- Asian Countries to Ratify Copyright Treaties
Authors Succeed in China's Largest Copyright Case
In an apparent victory for intellectual property rights, fourteen authors and the People's Literature Publishing House (PLPH) have succeeded in a recent copyright infringement action against the China Social Publishing House and the Fuge Village Welfare Printing Plant.
Initiated in the Second Beijing Intermediate People's Court on February 8, 2001, the lawsuit stands as China's largest domestic copyright infringement action to date.
The plaintiffs, who included authors Ba Jin, Wei Tao and Shu Ji, alleged that the China Social Publishing House and the Fuge Village Welfare Printing Plant failed to obtain the necessary permission for its publication of Classic Prose for Middle School Students' After-School Readings. They also argued that the illegal publication of their work constituted a violation of the authors' copyright and the publishers' exclusive publishing rights.
The defendants conceded to the charge of copyright violation and agreed to compensate the plaintiffs RMB 1.03 million (US $124,396) for economic loss. The defendants also agreed to immediately cease further publication of the offending material and to destroy all remaining stock.
(Source: Chinaonline)
Patenting New Technologies
The question of patenting new technologies, such as DNA sequencing, Internet-related innovations and biotechnology, has come under the spotlight in China lately.
In a recent interview with the China Daily, Wen Xikai, senior research fellow with the State Intellectual Property Office, said that Chinese authorities "will continue to keep a close eye on the evolution of these technologies and [will] look at the possibility of bringing them under the protection of the law".
Wen stated that the Office has already received applications from both local and foreign organizations wishing to patent new technologies and products, such as gene-modified crops and information technology systems.
Speaking at a recent intellectual property seminar held in Beijing, Zhang Hanlin, executive director of the World Trade Organization Research Center at the University of International Business and Economics, said that the extension of patent protection into these new areas is of the utmost importance. Zhang believes these new technologies to be the backbone of the new economy and "will become the major force behind China's agricultural modernization".
While the State Intellectual Property Office received more than 170,000 patent applications last year, up 27.2% from 1999, the main problem with intellectual property protection in China lies with weak enforcement. Zhang stated that "… although China has established a legal network on par with developed countries and in line with the requirements of the WTO, enforcement of the law still lags behind global standards". A further problem with patent protection in China, according to Guo Shoukang of Renmin University in Beijing, is that patent owners often have no idea of how to protect their own patent rights. In this regard, Wen Xikai stated that "[m]ore training and public campaigns should take place in order to spread the concept of intellectual property rights protection so that China will be ready for WTO entry".
(Source: China.org, China Daily)
China to Adopt International Standards on Imitations
Deputy Director of the State Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision, Li Zhonghai, has stated that China will adopt more internationally accepted standards on quality and technical supervision. Speaking at a recent Beijing seminar on the protection of genuine products, Li said that the initiatives are part of China's efforts to curb the rampant manufacturing and sale of counterfeit goods.
Part of the increased protection will come from the "genuine origin products" program, introduced by the Bureau in August 1999. To date only three products have been awarded the title - Shaoxing Wine, Xuanwei Ham and Maotai Spirit. These products are characterized by the use of raw materials that are peculiar to particular areas of China and are made using unique processes.
Since October 2000, authorities in China have uncovered more than RMB 400 million (US $48.2 million) worth of fake products under the names of foreign-funded enterprises.
(Source: China.org, China Daily)
Patenting to Protect China's Cultural Heritage
An international seminar on "The Application and Protection of Intellectual Property" was held in Beijing on April 11, 2001. Both foreign and local experts stressed the need for a strengthening of China's intellectual property system in order to promote and fully exploit traditional Chinese culture.
Experts pointed out that in recent times intellectual property has become a form of currency itself and that protection of IP rights is often just as important as controlling production processes.
An example of the importance of intellectual property can be found in the materials and methods used to manufacture Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). While pharmaceutical companies in the United States and Europe file thousands of patents each year, Chinese medical companies have been slow to protect their intellectual property. Experts at the seminar suggested that a complete survey and analysis of the components of TCM and its modern development would help to identify patentable medical technology before it becomes widely applied elsewhere.
(Source: China.org, People's Daily)
Asian Countries to Ratify Copyright Treaties
Representatives from China, Singapore, Thailand, India and other Asia Pacific countries have expressed their willingness to ratify two key international treaties - the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and the WIPO Performances and Producers of Phonograms Treaty (WPPT).
Over twenty countries from the Asia Pacific region were represented at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) seminar, held in Guangzhou late last month. The representatives also committed to bringing local laws more into line with international copyright standards.
Lehman Lee & Xu
China Lawyers, Notaries, Patent, Copyright and Trademark Agents
Suite 188, Beijing International Club
21 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Beijing 100020 China
Tel.: (86)(10) 6532-3861
Fax: (86)(10) 6532-3877
mail@chinalaw.cc
http://www.chinalaw.cc/
To unsubscribe from this newsletter send an email to unsubscribe_ip@chinalaw.cc Please include the email address to which the newsletter is being sent (not a forwarded address) in the body of the email.
The China Intellectual Property Law Newsletter is intended to be used for news purposes only. It should not be taken as comprehensive legal advice, and Lehman, Lee & Xu will not be held responsible for any such reliance on its contents.
