Domestic enterprises should work harder to make technological innovations
under the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR), as China's IPR laws
and regulations have reached international standards, Vice-Premier Wu Yi said
Tuesday in Beijing.
She was speaking at a national patent conference, which was held by State
Intellectual Property Office which was being held in Beijing.
Research institutions and enterprises should also upgrade technology
standards in the process of research development, Wu said.
She said more efforts are needed to further tighten IPR enforcement by
combining people's courts with intellectual property administrative departments.
She added these sectors should deal with a number of IPR infringement activities
with a heavy hand.
Ministries or commissions under the State Council and regional governmental
departments must give higher regard to IPR systems and increase relevant funds
to create a more favourable climate for enterprises, Wu said.
Starting this year, the State Intellectual Property Office will team up with
other governmental departments to build an Internet-based patent searching and
information service network which covers information from major national
economic sectors, according to Office Commissioner Wang Jingchuan.
The network will be open to the public upon completion, said Wang, who did
not specify when the network was scheduled to be completed.
He said preferential policies will be given to enterprises and industrial
parks in major cities to encourage the development of patented technologies and
products.
China will enlarge the scale of IPR co-operation and exchanges with foreign
countries, and actively take part in work for re-adjusting and improving
international IPR rules over the next few years, said Wang.
In the past three years, China has taken part in IPR discussions with the
TRIPS (trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights) Council of the
World Trade Organization, according to Wang.
Discussions involved studies of genetic resources, traditional folk culture,
IPR protection for small and medium-sized firms, and reform of the Patent
Co-operation Treaty with the World Intellectual Property Organization, he added.
"This indicates that China has played an important role in the improvement of
international IPR systems,'' Wang said.
At the China-Europe Intellectual Property Protection Conference which took
place late last October, German patent and trademark expert Heinz Goddar said
that in the process of preparing to join the WTO and accepting TRIPS
requirements, China had adopted patent standards and used those standards in
patents administrations.
China's patent examination procedures are quite similar with those in Europe,
as China's Patent Law and practices are based on European practices in this
regard, he said.
Goddar said over the past few years that Chinese enterprises had gained
remarkable progress in the enforcement of protection in the information and
biotechnology fields.
Goddar said he believed China's courts will build up a tight IPR network to
help prevent violations of relevant laws.
