The outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic led to an unprecedented increase in online piracy worldwide regarding music, movies, television, publishing, and software. For example, the number of pirated movies increased by 39% in 2022 compared to 2021, while the number of visits to piracy websites to watch movies increased by about 9%. The same… Continue reading Digital content piracy on the rise
Category: IP
Combating Bad Faith Trademark Applications
In January 2023, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) published a new draft amendment to the Trademark Law. It makes a number of important adjustments and adds 23 new articles. For foreign companies, the biggest advantage of this amendment is that it strengthens the fight against bad faith trademark registration at the legislative level,… Continue reading Combating Bad Faith Trademark Applications
Covert Brand Purchasing as an IP Protection Strategy
One does not always have to take legal action to combat a potentially dangerous opposing brand. One option is also to buy this trademark covertly via a middleman function and thus eliminate the threat potential. The following case from practice: A German mechanical engineering company, which is very successful in China, discovered that there was… Continue reading Covert Brand Purchasing as an IP Protection Strategy
VR for Industry 4.0 in the Chinese Market
Virtual reality for Industry 4.0 is also gaining importance in China. Both areas, VR and I4.0, are important components of China’s strategic planning and are promoted accordingly by the state. For Western companies, a standardized industry model of a factory of the future could be an option to illustrate the possibilities and advantages of cross-border… Continue reading VR for Industry 4.0 in the Chinese Market
New Year, New Guidance Documents: China Improves IP Protection
The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released information on the implementation of the Opinions on Strengthening Intellectual Property Protection (关于强化知识产权保护的意见) in late October 2022. They explain how amendments to the 2021 Patent Law will be implemented in practice. In addition, CNIPA aims to complete the revision and concretization of the Patent Law Implementation Rules… Continue reading New Year, New Guidance Documents: China Improves IP Protection
Security, Science and Technology
Political speeches and documents are known to provide valid clues to future developments in the PRC. Analysts therefore try to extract priorities and orientations from the phraseology, word choice, and frequency of terms related to the 20th Party Congress. In doing so, they also take into account minor changes in phrases that have appeared at… Continue reading Security, Science and Technology
Customs Recordation: Trademark protection by customs
China Customs is extremely active in combating trademark counterfeiting. In 2020, the General Administration of Customs seized approximately 56 million products that infringed on intellectual property rights – of which 99.37% infringed on trademark rights. In contrast to this enormous volume of counterfeiting is the fact that many multinational companies are not even aware of… Continue reading Customs Recordation: Trademark protection by customs
Enforcement of Judgments: Freezing assets
It is now well known that counterfeiters of branded or patented products are becoming increasingly sophisticated and that many infringements are often no longer 100% copies, making prosecution more difficult. We are now also observing a new trend in our day-to-day business: Chinese counterfeiters have prepared themselves to owe the compensation due after losing a… Continue reading Enforcement of Judgments: Freezing assets
Lack of Confidentiality Review: CNIPA Declares Patent Invalid
In May 2022, for the first time in Chinese history, a Chinese patent was fully invalidated by the CNIPA examination board (Decision 55586) because the patentee failed to apply for a confidentiality examination before filing the first foreign application. According to Article 20.1 of the Chinese Patent Law, any invention made in or partly made… Continue reading Lack of Confidentiality Review: CNIPA Declares Patent Invalid
Arbitration in the Field of Intellectual Property
To minimize IPR risks and properly resolve cross-border trade disputes, the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) established the IPR Arbitration Centre in July 2022, specializing in IPR dispute resolution. CIETAC has extensive experience and an outstanding team of experts in the field of IP dispute resolution. In the past five years, CIETAC… Continue reading Arbitration in the Field of Intellectual Property
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