China “Hitting the Accelerator” to Strengthen IPR Protection

China's intellectual property protection has been embarking on the "fast lane" and continues to accelerate.

The State Council executive meeting held on the July 17 put forward three priorities to strengthen IPR protection going forward, including continuously strengthening law enforcement and protecting legitimate rights and interests of various market entities without discrimination; 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; and continue to improve the quality and efficiency of intellectual property examination.

Since this year, China's top officials have frequently mentioned the need to strengthen IPR protection, and emphasized the necessity to crack down on IPR infringement and foster a business environment that respects the value of knowledge.

"Two lines" of intellectual property protection

Why do top officials frequently emphasize strengthening IPR protection? Experts believe that the reason lies in China's unprecedented demand for intellectual property protection.

Yang Guohua, a professor of Tsinghua University School of Law, said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency that there were always "two lines" in China's IPR protection. The first was internal needs—IPR protection was conducive to China’s development, and the protection of patents, trademarks and copyrights was necessary for developing China into an innovative country. This was also China's own need and choice after the Reform and Opening-up. The second was external pressure—since the late 1980s, the United States has frequently exerted pressure on China to fill the gap in intellectual property protection as soon as possible.

Driven by both internal need and external pressure, China has gradually put in place a legal system for IPR protection in the past few decades and has become an increasingly important intellectual property power. However, there is no denying that some deep-rooted problems still exist.

Intellectual property protection is still "on the way"

The 2019 China Business Climate Survey Report jointly released by Deloitte and the AmCham China shows that most interviewees approve of China's efforts in legislation and law enforcement regarding IPR protection, especially in trademark and brand protection.

Wang Shouwen, vice minister of Commerce, pointed out that China filed more than 1.5 million patent applications last year, ranking first in the world for eight consecutive years. The Global Innovation Index 2018 released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) shows that China ranks 17th among countries in the world, up 5 places from the previous year, and has been among top 20 countries for the first time.

Of course, there are still such problems as weak awareness and insufficient law enforcement. Yang Guohua said that to solve these problems required the whole China to make determined efforts, and could not focus on short-term interests at the expense of China’s development and long-term stability.

August 28, 2019

Source: China News Service

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