Multiple Measures Taken to Eliminate Film Piracy
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Recently, the forum “Film and Copyright: Opportunities and Challenges” was co-hosted by WIPO Office in China (WOC) and Beijing Municipal Copyright Office in Beijing.
In recent years, China’s film industry has witnessed vibrant development. Statistics show that China’s film market rocketed to a record high in 2018 with its box office exceeding 60.9 billion Yuan; however, film piracy cannot be ignored.
Film piracy
The film industry, as an important cultural industry, is a key part of the copyright industry. According to the 2017 Research on the Economic Contribution of Copyright Industry in China released by Chinese Academy of Press and Publication on April 26, China’s copyright industry has gained great momentum. From 2013 to 2017, the copyright industry has seen an increased added value, and contributed 7.35% to the entire GDP by the year 2017. In particular, the added value of film industry and other core copyright industries has increased dramatically to about 63% of the entire industry, which makes them key players in China’s copyright industry.
On the other hand, the fast development of the Internet and the emergence of new technologies have given rise to various types of piracy, posing great challenges to copyright protection. Take films released during the Spring Festival as an example, the film piracy now has a sophisticated chain from upstream copy all the way to downstream distribution.
Despite infringement and piracy, global film copyright protection still faces similar problems including lack of excellent films, low proportion of copyright granting, little efforts in the development of film-related merchandise, weak public awareness concerning copyright and unbalanced benefit sharing among rights owners.
Concerted efforts to protect copyrights
China highly values copyright protection of the film industry and other related industries. In legislation, the third revision of the Copyright Law is underway to establish clearer laws and regulations for audiovisual products. In addition, Film Industry Stimulation Law of the People’s Republic of China implemented in March 2017 also has stipulations regarding copyright protection. In law enforcement, copyright protection has been strengthened. Since 2005, National Copyright Administration of China (NACA) has carried out “Sword Net” special campaigns to fight piracy and infringement with the film industry as a priority. NACA has also launched special campaigns to crack down on private movie theaters, regulate video websites and establish early warning system for copyright protection. In addition, the Chinese government is working to improve public service system of copyright, enhance copyright awareness across society, and promote copyright internationalization to boost the film industry.
Local copyright law enforcement authorities are also making efforts to deal with film piracy and infringement. According to statistics of Beijing Municipal Network Monitoring Center, copyright protection has made great headway with up to 95% links to pirated movies deleted in recent years. Relevant departments have strengthened investigation and punishment of illegal movies. In 2017 and 2018, law enforcement authorities in Beijing investigated and closed nearly 10 illegal film screening sites and thus greatly improved market environment.
June 24, 2019
Source: National Copyright Administration of China
Photo from: 6199pic.com
