Innovative development added momentum - the new patent act came into force on 1 june 2021
Why change the patent law
Since its introduction on 1 april 1985, china's patent law has been amended four times, which has played an important role in encouraging innovation and promoting innovation. As the situation evolves, a number of new developments and problems have arisen in the area of patents: the rate of conversion of patent technologies is low; there are evidentiary difficulties and high costs associated with patent protection。
On 1 june 2021, a newly amended patent law was formally introduced with the aim of effectively resolving problems in practice, which are important for safeguarding the legitimate interests of patent holders, enhancing the confidence of innovation subjects in patent protection and stimulating innovation throughout society。
What initiatives to strengthen intellectual property protection are proposed in the new patent law
In order to enhance the protection of the legal rights and interests of the patentee, the new punitive compensation regime was introduced to provide that the people's court may determine the amount of compensation in cases of intentional infringement of the patent, in serious cases, within one to five times the amount calculated on the basis of the loss suffered by the holder, the benefit obtained by the infringer or the royalties from the patent. The statutory ceiling was raised to $5 million and the floor to $30,000. China's attitude and determination to strictly protect intellectual property rights in accordance with the law is demonstrated by a significant increase in the cost of infringement。
What are the elements of the new patent law that promote patent conversion
To further raise awareness of “sleeping” patents, the newly amended patent law introduced an open licensing system for patents, improved job invention systems, enhanced patent information public services, aimed at promoting the transformation of patent outcomes, achieving the market value of patents and providing strong support for the development of real economic innovation. The open licensing system is an important legal regime for patent conversion and its core is to encourage patent holders to open up patent rights to society, promote supply-and-demand interface and patent enforcement, and truly realize patent value. The act provides for, inter alia, the procedural elements for the opening of licences and their entry into force, with a view to addressing information asymmetries between the supply of and demand for patented technologies through government public services and increasing the efficiency of patent conversion。
What adjustments have been made to the patent law in force to improve the system of visual design
Local appearance design is becoming an important method of product design. As the pace of “go-out” accelerates, the level of appearance design in chinese enterprises is gradually increasing, and there is a marked increase in the demand for local appearance design protection for enterprises abroad. The new law on patents, which protects local appearance designs, is in line with the needs of enterprises and international practices, and allows chinese enterprises to make better use of rules, further develop international markets and improve international competitiveness。
The new amended patent law extends the duration of patent protection for visual design to 15 years in order to meet the demand of innovative subjects for diversification of the duration of protection and to create conditions for china to accede to the hague agreement on the international registration of industrial design. In addition, patent law increases the domestic priority system for patent applications for visual design, making it clear that applicants who make a patent application in china on the same subject within six months from the date of their first patent application in china have priority, thus further reducing the cost of the application. Fung fei
Responding to the new demands of the times - the new copyright act came into force on 1 june 2021
What is the significance of the new copyright law
On 1 june 2021, the newly amended copyright act was formalized. At the beginning of the third revision of the copyright act in 2011, the aim of the reform was clearly to create a new age of copyright law that was realistic, international and future-oriented and compatible with the digital economy. The ten-year process of revision has also fully reflected the spirit of open-door legislation, scientific legislation and a positive response to the new demands of the digital age, linking it with the civil code and international copyright treaties。
What adjustments have been made by the copyright act of 1 june to adapt to technological advances
While technological advances change the ways and means of disseminating content, the development of the digital copyright industry has long been plagued by issues such as the protection of new works. In response, the newly amended copyright act introduced a more extensive extension of the definition and type of work and expanded the scope of copyright protection, such as article 3 which clearly defined work as “intellectual achievements in the literary, artistic and scientific fields that are original and can be expressed in a certain form”; and the original copyright act, which changed the words “in the film and in the production of similar films” to “in the audio-visual productions”。
In order to adapt to the new state of technological development, the newly amended copyright law makes clear the relevant legal rules governing the application of digital technology, such as the “digitized” reproduction of new works。
What new measures are proposed by the new copyright law to combat violations
In order to address the high cost of litigation and the long duration of the copyright protection, the newly amended copyright law introduced a punitive compensation system, raising the maximum amount of statutory compensation to $5 million and setting the minimum amount of statutory compensation at $500; in cases of intentional infractions and aggravating circumstances, the court could award punitive damages of between two and five times, significantly increasing the cost of tort。
How does the new copyright law relate to international treaties
In recent years, china has actively followed international treaties, fulfilled its international obligations and demonstrated its image as a major power. The newly amended copyright law also strengthens the link with international treaties, such as article 52, paragraph 8, on the right to rent for performers, which very well echoes the relevant provisions of the beijing treaty on audio-visual performing; and includes the act of “providing the published works to persons with visual impairments in accessible formats”, among other things, in the context of rational use, paving the way for china's ratification of the marrakesh treaty on facilitating access to published works for persons with blind, visually impaired or other print impairment. (kang woo)
