The Chinese government has begun to take concrete measures to
help domestic enterprises better deal with international disputes
related to intellectual property rights since the beginning of the
year, in a bid to protect the nation's fundamental benefits and
economic security.
Since China's entry into the World
Trade Organization, large Chinese enterprises have been
involved in more than 20 international patent disputes. In one of
the major cases, the US-based company Cisco sued China's network
company Huawei Technologies for infringement of several of its
intellectual property rights.
The number of patent infringement-related cases is increasing
and so is the amount of money paid by Chinese enterprises which are
involved but have little knowledge about how to deal with such
circumstances, according to the State Intellectual Property Office
under the State Council, China's cabinet.
The office is establishing emergency and warning mechanisms to
protect the legal rights and interests of Chinese enterprises in
this field.
From 2004, the State Intellectual Property Office will ask some
departments to keep a close eye on information and disputes
relating to intellectual property rights, make analyses, send
warning messages to relevant governmental departments, guilds and
enterprises, and put forward solutions, said Deputy Director Zhang
Qin.
The office will make efforts this year to help enterprises build
and improve systems managing intellectual property rights, so as to
promote their capability in safeguarding such rights.
It will also facilitate the establishment of intellectual
property right agencies, and train a number of agents and lawyers
familiar with international rules, laws and practices concerning
intellectual property rights.
Promoting the commercialization of technologies based on China's
own intellectual property rights and enhancing law enforcement are
also on this year's work agenda of the office.
Experts estimate that each year, China's universities train
about 1,000 students in the profession of intellectual property
rights. Less than 5 percent of all students in 11 major
universities select intellectual property right courses, according
to a survey conducted by the State Intellectual Property
Office.
"It is therefore urgent to train high-level talented
professional versed in rules and regulations in this field," said
Zhang Qin, the deputy director.
The State Intellectual Property Office has made plans to
cultivate hundreds of senior professionals familiar with
international rules, thousands of talented people engaging in
patent management, appraisal and law enforcement, and tens of
thousands of people working for enterprises and agencies in this
field.
In the first 11 months of 2003, Chinese courts handled 5,750
intellectual property lawsuits, an increase of 24.57 percent year
on year.
China could face more international trade disputes during its
economic integration into the global economy, said Xiao Yang,
president of the Supreme People's Court.
(Xinhua News Agency January 26, 2004)