Masses of pirated products have been seized, sales of certified products have risen and business owners are now much more aware of IPR protection in China thanks to an intensive anti-piracy campaign, a Chinese official announced in Beijing yesterday.

"The campaign has produced good results," said an official with a national office responsible for cracking down on pornographic and illegal publications.

The 100-day nationwide campaign, focusing on pirated audio and video products and computer software, was launched on July 15 by the office, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Public Security and seven other departments of the central authorities.

According to the official, 19.46 million illegal publications were seized each month on average from July through September, more than double the monthly average figure for the January-June period.

He said many dealers checked their stock themselves and voluntarily handed over pirated products. The statistics are not complete but apparently about one million items were collected in this way.

"Audio and video product dealers and computer software dealers are much more aware of IPR protection now," said the official.

He said reports from audio and video product wholesalers in Beijing and Guangzhou indicate that daily sales of certified products have risen by around 20 percent since the campaign was launched.

(Xinhua News Agency October 25, 2006)