Patent Law regulation amended to improve IP protection system

Revision to guarantee implementation of rules, remedy practical challenges

A regulation on helping implement the Patent Law is being amended in an effort to improve the legal system and promote high-quality development in this regard, an official from China's top intellectual property regulator said.

"A new chapter concerning design applications will be added in the regulation to align with international rules, facilitating higher efficiency and quality in the patent review process," said Zhang Peng, head of the department of treaty and law with the China National Intellectual Property Administration.

She released the information at a news conference on Wednesday, adding that the administration had formed a draft amendment to the regulation and submitted it to relevant authorities for review after soliciting public opinions.

The regulation, which features specifics on solving practical problems, if completely revised, will better guarantee the implementation of the Patent Law and take the country's patent industry to the next level, she added.

The administration is also planning to curb malicious trademark registration by optimizing its authorization procedures, with more research to establish rules for digital IP protection, according to Zhang.

In the past decade, China has seen progress in the rule of law in the IP field. IP protection as a major principle was highlighted in the Civil Code, the nation's fundamental law for regulating civil activities, and punitive damage was also supported in relevant IP laws, including the Patent Law and the Trademark Law.

"During the same period, we've also stepped up efforts to introduce the laws and rules on IP protection through short-video sharing platforms to enhance public awareness," said Heng Fuguang, spokesman for the administration.

"We've provided videos on Bilibili, a video-sharing service popular among young people, to help educate children to strengthen IP protection in particular, supporting the publication of IP-related books and producing cartoons on inventions," he said.

In the face of the country's rising IP disputes, the administration has encouraged its sub-offices to resolve cases by mediation.

Data released at the news conference showed that from January to October, 16 mediation organizations guided and managed by the Beijing Intellectual Property Office dealt with 11,994 IP-related disputes, of which about 60 percent were successfully resolved through mediation.

"A few mediation committees for cutting-edge sectors, such as those of software, healthcare and information, have also been established," said Pan Xinsheng, deputy head of the Beijing office, who added that the mediation has given people easier, highly efficient and low-cost access to solving IP-related cases.