Good afternoon. Welcome to IP cafe. This is Yvonne. Here is Grace. Now take a cup of coffee and enjoy the five minutes with us, we are going to share with you the latest IP News in China. Now let's see our top News this week.
New Intellectual Property Court Opens in Beijing
Huawei Sues InterDigital over FRAND Violations
Taiwan Investigates BASF Employees over Trade Secrets Theft
China has 1.6 Million Invention Patents and 31,000 Trademark Violation Cases
China's top court opened its Intellectual Property Court in Beijing on January 1, as a new step to effectively safeguard IP rights. The new court, a subdivision of the Supreme People's Court, has been set up in the capital's Fengtai district. It is responsible for handling civil and administrative appeals related to patents, according to the top court. Litigants who disagree with rulings made by intermediate people's courts at the city or prefecture level, or by specialized IP courts, can appeal directly to the top court instead of first appealing to provincial high people's courts. The IP Court will also study difficult patent-related cases to help foster a favorable legal environment for technological innovation, and create a better business environment for domestic and international enterprises. The new court, with 30 judges selected from IP tribunals in 10 provinces across the country, has courtrooms, a litigation service center, a technical investigation department, and a coordination office.
Subdivision: /'sʌbdɪvɪʒ(ə)n/ n. 分支,分部;细分;亚门;分舱;开发活动
an area composed of subdivided lots
例句：In Georgia, she was one of only three slaves on property that is now part of a neat subdivision in Rex, near Atlanta.
Courtroom: /'kɔːtruːm; -rʊm/ n. 法庭；审判室
A courtroom is the enclosed space in which a judge regularly holds court.
例句：The hecklers were banished from the courtroom.
Chinese conglomerate Huawei has sued wireless technology provider InterDigital, based in the US, for breaching licensing obligations surrounding patents essential to 3G, 4G and 5G telecoms standards. The complaint was filed on January 2 in the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court, according to an InterDigital filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission dated on January 7. Huawei claimed that InterDigital has failed to license the patents on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms. It also wants the court to determine the terms for licensing InterDigital’s Chinese patents that are essential to 3G, 4G and 5G standards on Huawei’s wireless terminal unit products made and/or sold in China from 2019 to 2023. Bill Merritt, CEO of InterDigital, told WIPR that the number of Chinese patents relevant to these wireless communications standards is not available, but that the company’s overall portfolio in these areas totals 36,000 patents and applications. A licensing agreement between InterDigital and Huawei concluded only last month, on December 31, having been signed in 2016. Merritt said the patents covered by that agreement are mostly similar to those now in dispute, with the exception of the ones relating to 5G.
Conglomerate：/kən'glɒm(ə)rət/ n. 企业集团；聚合物 vi. 凝聚成团 adj. 成团的；砾岩性的
a group of diverse companies under common ownership and
例句：Legend Holdings is an investment conglomerate partly owned by the Chinese government.
Wireless： /ˈwʌɪəlɪs/ n. 无线电adj. 无线的；无线电的 vt. 用无线电报与…联系；用无线电报发送
transmission by radio waves
例句：W e find ourselves cruelly cut off from the wireless world.
Taiwanese authorities are investigating six current and former employees of German chemical company BASF who are accused of leaking company secrets to a Chinese rival. Five employees have been detained and one granted bail. No charges have yet been filed. A senior manager of the company is suspected of selling confidential information concerning electronic manufacturing processes and technology to Chinese company Jiangyin Jianghua Microelectronics Materials. The news comes amid growing concern in the US regarding the alleged theft of IP and trade secrets by Chinese companies. In November 2018, WIPR reported that the US Department of Justice had charged ten Chinese nationals with the theft of trade secrets from American and European companies. The Chinese government has rejected US allegations that it has sponsored a “global espionage campaign” aimed at stealing IP.
Bail: /beɪl/ n. 保释，保释人；保释金；vt. 保释，帮助某人脱离困境；往外舀水
(criminal law) Money that must be forfeited by the bondsman if an accused person fails to appear in court for trial.
例句：She was the only one granted bail.
Rival：/'raɪvl/ n. 对手；竞争者vt. 与…竞争；比得上某人
The contestant you hope to defeat.
例句：He prayed down his rival.
The number of new invention patents registered on the Chinese mainland increased by about 18% in 2018, according to a meeting of the heads of intellectual property rights (IPR) administrations on January 7, 2019. By the end of 2018, there were about 1.6 million invention patents from the Chinese mainland, rising 18.1% year on year. The number of valid registrations of trademarks reached 18.05 million, up 32.8%. In 2018, 31,000 trademark violation cases, with a total value of 550 million Yuan (about 80.3 million U.S. dollars), were investigated. A total of 510 million Yuan were confiscated as fines. Chief of the State Administration for Market Regulation Zhang Mao said the IPR had played an increasingly prominent role in the country's economic and social development. Zhang called for improved IPR review efficiency, reinforced IPR protection and enhanced international competitiveness and influence.
Confiscate：/'kɒnfɪskeɪt/ vt. 没收；充公；查抄adj. 被没收的
Take temporary possession of as a security, by legal authority.
例句：He confronted their leader and threatened to have the authorities confiscate their equipment.
