Industry Spotlight: IPR in the ICT Industry

shutterstock_182269964China’s IPR (intellectual property rights) protection system is expanding and improving, but it remains separate and distinct from the European system. Accordingly, to be successful in China your business must take preventative measures to protect your intellectual property rights; one must obtain valid IPR rights in China as a minimum first step. In other words, the protection of IPR rights should be a key part of your business strategy, whether entering or expanding operations in China.

While some IPR issues are common to all types of European companies doing business in China, others are specific to the ICT industry. The China IPR SME Helpdesk outlines appropriate patent and trade secret strategies, the type of patents particularly relevant to ICT companies and suitable IPR enforcement measures. Enforcement of IPR is discussed through a case study of an IT company that has taken enforcement actions in China.

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Food and Beverage Podcast with our expert Reinout Van Malenstein

RvMIt’s Friday and the first week of our industry spotlight month is drawing to a close.
As a final treat for EU Food and Beverage SMEs we asked Mr Reinout Van Malenstein, IP lawyer and expert in Chinese intellectual property law for some advice for F&B companies looking to make the leap into the lucrative Chinese market:

 

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Guest Expert Davide Follador: GIs in China Today

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Davide Follador is one of IP Key’s long term experts based in Beijing. He is responsible for the legal component focusing on trademarks, copyright, geographical indications and IP enforcement. He served as officer in the Italian Police and subsequently obtained a Master of Laws in International Commercial Law. He is also a qualified European Trademark and Design Attorney (OHIM) and is a member of the Milan BAR. Davide has been practicing as an  IP lawyer since 2001 and specialises in cross border EU-China Intellectual Property matters, currently working with a cross-cultural and highly specialised international team based in Europe and in China, to design and develop EU-China cooperation activities in the field of intellectual property.

In recent months Davide has worked closely with both EU and domestic Chinese entities in the study of Chinese legal policy regarding GI products. He has kindly collated a wealth of information, together with his professional analysis of the current situation in China which should be of great use to any EU producers of GI products looking to export to China.

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Alibaba – Who is responsible for keeping out the counterfeits?

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Alibaba_Chinese_logoChinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is back in the news this week, but with less fanfare than its biggest-IPO-in-history success story back in September. It has been criticised in a report from the State Administration of Industry & Commerce (SAIC) over hosting the sale of counterfeits, among other illegal trading issues. Data from the SAIC suggests 63% of listed brand goods on the site are not genuine – no insignificant number to be sure. This has kicked-off a battle between the SAIC and Alibaba, with counter-statements from the company and a number of accounts of alleged infringements emerging from both sides.

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New EU and China IP Law Database launched

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IP Key, a project of the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) and the European Patent Office (EPO), have launched the EU and China Law Database. It is an online database designed as a comprehensive resource of IP laws in Europe and China, containing over 1,600 documents (with ongoing updates).

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