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Intellectual Property Protectionin Liaoning Province 2007
In 2007, under the leadership of the Provincial Committee of CPC and the provincial government, the work on intellectual property protection of the province had been done by initiating the making of strategy of intellectual property for the province on an overall basis while supporting the construction of an innovation nation and implementing the scientific development view. Quantity of proprietary intellectual property continued to grow, the work on administration of intellectual property protection progressed steadily and the application of intellectual property provided a powerful support to the quick development of the economy and the rejuvenation of the old industrial base of the province. Various laws and regulations about intellectual property protection were followed and implemented and thus the intellectual property was protected vigorously.
I. Creation of Intellectual Property
1. Patent
The number of annual patent application reached 19,754 cases in the whole province in 2007. It was a 15.9% increase over last year, which included 5,516 cases of invention－an increase of 26% as compared with last year, 8,012 cases of utility model and 6,226 cases of design; or 8,059 cases of on-duty application and 11,695 cases of off-duty position application subject to their applications. The configuration of patent application was improved: invention application amounted to 27.9%, an increase of 2.3% as compared with 2006 and it exceeded the average rate of 26.1% of invention application rate nationwide.
In 2007, the number of patent granted of the whole province reached 9,615, an increase of 30% as compared with last year, it included, 1,220 cases of invention, 7,034 cases of utility model, and 1,360 cases of design.
There were four cities whose number of patent application exceeded one thousand cases in 2007: Shenyang, 4,905 cases, amounting to 24.8% of the total annual amount of the whole province; Dalian, 8,730 cases, 44.2% of the total; Anshan, 1,488 cases and Panjin, 1,135. The sub-total amount of other ten cities of the province was 3,496 cases, 17.7% of the total of the province annually. The number of invention application of Shenyang reached 2,279 cases so Shenyang was still the number one for its invention application in the province and that of Dalian was 1,604 cases.
By the end of 2007, the accumulated amount of patent application of the province was 160,852 cases and the accumulated patent right granted was 80,579 cases and both ranked number seven nationwide. Among the accumulated patent application, 32,704 were of invention, 97,164 of utility model and 30,984 of design; or 39,377 cases were of on-duty application, 121,475 of off-duty application subject to their applicators.
2. Trademark
The number of trademark registration application in 2007 was 11,704 cases and the number of registered trade mark was 5,974 cases. It was close to the average level of the nation and ranked number 10 nationwide. A greater result was achieved in the work of striving for well-known trademark: 12 well-known trademarks were confirmed.
By the end of 2007, the province obtained more than 85,000 registered trademarks accumulatively and 40 well-known trademarks, which ranked number 9 nationwide; the number of registered geographical indications was still six and it ranked number 10 nationwide.
3. Famous Brand Product
In 2007, 31 (containing 5 for re-evaluation)products of the province were authenticated as China Famous Brand Product; two products were allowed to implement origin-named product and three further more were waiting for approval.
By the end of 2007 the province had 60 Famous Brand Products in total and the ranking was lifted up to number 9 from number 10 nationwide as to the total number of Famous Brand Product; ten products were approved by the State Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision to implement origin-named product protection and it ranked number 16 nationwide.
4. Copyright
In 2007, the copyright registration in the whole province reached 824 pieces. It was an increase of 9.1% as compared with last year. It included 73 pieces of characters work, 82 pieces of music work, 331 pieces of fine art work, 305 pieces of movie and TV work, 16 pieces of play work, one piece of dance work, 14 pieces of computer software work and two pieces of other work.
Copyright contract registration in the whole province reached 372 pieces in total in 2007 and it was an increase of 105.5% as compared with last year. It included 258 pieces of imported books, 8 pieces of imported audio-video work and computer software, and 106 pieces of exported books.
5. New Plant Variety
40 agricultural plants in the province were granted the title of New Plant Variety in 2007.
By the end of 2007 the accumulated application on New Variety of Agricultural Plant reached 309 pieces and it ranked number 5 nationwide; the granted new variety of agricultural plant reached 114 pieces and it ranked number 3 nationwide; the granted new variety of forestry plant reached 25 pieces.
6. Software
In 2007, 640 pieces of software product were registered in the whole province and 87 enterprises were authenticated as software manufacturer.
By the end of 2007, there were 2,689 pieces of registered software product and 646 authenticated software manufacturers accumulatively in the province.
In 2007, 36 enterprises were newly authenticated as software manufacturer and 248 authenticated software manufacturers accumulatively, 138 newly registered software products and 894 software products accumulatively in Shenyang. 35 newly authenticated software manufacturers and 224 manufacturers accumulatively, 446 pieces of newly registered software products and 1,342 pieces accumulatively in Dalian.
II. Administration, Implementation and Protection of Intellectual Property
1. Making of “Strategy Outline on Intellectual Property in Liaoning Province”
The 17th Conference of CPC proposed “The Strategy of Implementing Intellectual Property”. In order to put the spirit of the 17th Conference of CPC into practice and to upgrade the work on intellectual property in the province on an overall basis, and continued to timely work out the Strategy Outline on Intellectual Property for the province, we had completed the “Strategy Outline on Intellectual Property in Liaoning Province” (draft) and the “Seven Strategic Intellectual Property Topics” (draft) on science and technology, higher educational institutions, national defense, copyright, trademark, information industry and new plant variety. Shenyang and Anshan Cities also initiated their work on making up of the intellectual property strategy outline and other cities of the province started their making ups of the strategy outline in succession in combination with their practical conditions.
2. Patent
In order to optimize the patent application configuration of the province and to strengthen the proprietary innovation capability of the old industrial base of Liaoning Province, the province and its subordinated cities worked out encouraging policies to promote the patent application in succession, so that there were larger amplitude increase in both patent invention application and on-duty patent application. In 2007 the patent application of invention reached 5,516 cases. It was a 26.3% increase as compared with last year and a 16.3% exceeding to the predetermined goal of increase by the provincial government. The patent on-duty application reached 8059 cases, amounting to 40.8% of the whole patent application and a 10.5% increase as compared with last year. Quality of patent application of the province was evidently improved and the configuration of patent application was further optimized.
We continued to strengthen the propagation and training on intellectual property to improve the intellectual property consciousness of the whole society. We made a full use of the chance of the “4.26” World Intellectual Property Day and carried out an Intellectual Property Week activity in the whole province during that week, we held an opening ceremony and the intellectual property department at both provincial and municipal levels carried out high-powered propagation activities; opened up a special column of the Intellectual Property Week on the internet, made and put out public-interest ad; printed and distributed propaganda materials; worked out a white paper of “Intellectual Property Protection in Liaoning Province 2006”; held an “Intellectual Property & Proprietary Innovation Forum” for enterprises and institutions and a special topic report meeting on Intellectual Property & Economic Development for members of Spring Class of the Party College of the provincial committee of CPC; held the “Shenyang Public Lecture on Innovative Achievements of Modern Chinese Inventors” for different circles of the society; held a special topic lecture on “Intellectual Property Strategy” for members of the Senior Professionals Training Course. The training on intellectual property knowledge was carried out on multi-levels and the course of intellectual property entered into the classes of the Party Colleges of the provincial committee and party colleges of Shenyang, Dalian, Benxi, Dandong, Yingkou, Tieling, Chaoyang and Panjin municipal committees of CPC and all the members in a total number of more than 1,200 in these colleges were trained in the intellectual property course. Training courses on a public required subject of intellectual property were carried out for professionals and technical personnel and all together 1,400 peoples from all over the province were trained in the courses. Liaoning Provincial Bureau of Intellectual Property jointly held “Intellectual Property Strategy Training Course for Medium and Small Sized Enterprises”, “Senior Session Course on Standards & Patent”, “Training Course for Leading Cadres at County and District Level” with the Provincial Department of Medium-Small Sized Enterprises, the Provincial Bureau of Technical Supervision and the Provincial School of Administration respectively and more than 300 intellectual property administrative officials were trained. Shenyang municipality implemented a “Plan on Steps by Intellectual Property Lecturers Group Servicing Science & Technology Guided Enterprises” and organized experts to enter into the Science & Technology Guided Enterprises to popularize intellectual property knowledge. Dalian municipality organized “Intellectual Property Service Teams” to hold training courses in enterprises and institutions. Dandong municipality adopted a means of training of “Call-in, Sending-out, Going down” to bring up wise men of intellectual property. Training courses were also held in other cities of the province.
We continued the strengthening on the intellectual property administration faculty development. In 2007, Dalian Municipal Bureau of Intellectual Property set up the Division of Administrative Enforcement of Law on Patent. So did the municipal bureaus of intellectual property in Anshan. Benxi, Tieling and Fuxin cities. The bureaus of science and technology of the 16 districts, counties (city of county level) and development zones of Shenyang were added a new nameplate of “Bureau of Intellectual Property”, so did three districts and counties of Fushun City. The work on intellectual property was extended to government at district or county level. Supervision over intellectual property agent was enhanced and business of intellectual property agent was more normalized.
We continued the implementing of the project of “making enterprises more competitive” so as to boost the industrialization of patented techniques. We established Liaoning Patent Searches & Analysis Public Platform in which a sino-foreign patent database containing patent abstracts, full content of patent specifications and attached drawings, all together 45 million pieces in number, provided by seven countries and two organizations. It is the most perfect and most applicable patent database for the time being. It may provide the scientific and technological innovation of the province with patent information service. Shenyang Neusoft Group Co., Ltd., Anshan Iron & Steel Group Corporation and Dalian Chemistry & Physics Research Institute were conferred the title of “National Enterprise-Institution Intellectual Property Model Unit” by the State Intellectual Property Office. Anshan Iron & Steel Group Corporation, Anshan Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., and Dandong Jinwan Group Co., Ltd. became among the first batch of the enterprises as the national intellectual property exchange centre. Shenyang and Dalian became national modeling cities for intellectual property work after passing through evaluation-acceptance. Two patent projects, i.e., “Preparation of Hollow Fibre Membrance Separator Epoxy Sealing Head” by Dalian Chemistry & Physics Research Institute and “Car” by Shenyang Brilliance-Jinbei Automobile Co., Ltd. were awarded gold prize in the 10th National Patent Awarding, amounting 13% of the number of gold prize. Six other patent projects, including the “Insaturated Oxim-Ether Insect-Fungus Killing Agent”, were awarded Outstanding Prize.
We continued to work out and modify various rules and regulations for the patent technology industrialization and to make it to be institutionalized and to increase the transparency of government affairs. In 2007, the province set up 63 patent technology industrialization projects through examination. Each city of the province also make up encouraging policy on the conversion of patented techniques and set up their own patent technology industrialization projects so as to promote their work on patent technology industrialization and to bring up their local economic development.
We held the first session of Patent Technology Docking Fair for Invigorating Northeast Old Industrial Base. The fair was held on September 20 to 21, 2007 in Shenyang. 28 exhibition groups from Northeast China and Surrounding Bohai Zone participated the fair. More than 400 enterprises and institutions attended the fair and 457 intentional agreements representing a sum of business transaction of 548 million Yuan were signed. During the fair, the “Fair Website” was opened and achieved 102,157 web surfers and an average daily clicking of 1,407 times. 3076 patent technology docking projects which includes 2,183 supply projects and 893 demand project were submitted for application. And still 342 further projects reached cooperative intention via network “Purchasing Vehicle”.
We continued to strengthen the patent administrative enforcement of law and to enhance the intellectual property protection. We tried to modify the patent protection policy system development, strengthened the training for personnel of patent administrative enforcement of law to improve their professional capability and enforcement level. 100 more people were qualified for the patent administrative enforcement of law. The Intellectual Property Protection Cooperation Agreement Between Three Provinces and Two Cities Surrounding Bohai (Liaoning, Shandong, Hebei, Beijing and Tianjin) was signed and thus a trans-regional and trans-departmental association mechanism on patent administrative enforcement of law was established. More than 10 actions of special patent administrative enforcement of law involving nearly 1,000 person-times were taken. The “Two Hundred Project” on patent protection in Liaoning Province was implemented. In which 19 enterprises and 13 department stores were determined to be the first batch of “Two Hundred Project” implementing unit. The enforcement of law for exhibitions and fairs was continued to be enhanced. For instance, patent enforcement of law consultations and on-the-site administrative enforcement of law were carried out in the following fairs and exhibitions which were held in Shenyang: Annual Meeting of National Plastic Door and Window Industry, the 6th China National Equipment Manufacture Fair, New Patent Technology Docking Fair for Invigorating Northeast Old Industrial Base and etc. Intellectual property consultation room was set on eight exhibitions and fairs such as “3.15” Dalian International Consuming Goods Fair, the “57th China International Spring Fair on Medical Apparatus” to provide consultation service and accept complaints on forgery patent.
3. Trademark
In 2007, the industrial and commercial administration organizations at different levels of the province made a full use of the “Intellectual Property Week” as a chance in their work on well-known trademarks. They enhanced the propaganda on trade mark strategy to improve the trademark brand consciousness of the whole society and achieved such a trademark consciousness atmosphere to which the government takes care, the enterprises take great importance and the society pays attention. Concerned encouraging policies were worked out and a policy environment for the well-known trademarks was modified to guide enterprises to strive for their well-known trademarks and thus this work achieved new progress. Twelve trademarks, including “Huishan”, “Snow Flower”, “Strong shield”, “Bandchuidao”, “DYZV”, “Jincheng”, “Anlun”, “Yellow Sea”, “Blue Flower”, “Panjin Rice”, “Yu Wang”, “Kaisenmeng” were appraised as well-known trademarks in the whole year. Sticking to the principle of “establish one batch (of trademark), declare one batch for approval, and cultivate one batch for prepare”, we tried to do a better work for the well-known trademark in the province and to enhance the famous trade mark echelon development. Last year, 198 trademarks were newly recognized as famous trade marks of the province. Up to now there are 737 provincially famous trade marks and 926 municipally famous trademarks.
In the implementation of the project of enriching the peasants with trademarks, we continued to strengthen propaganda on the project so as to enhance the trademark consciousness of the peasants and to arouse the initiative of registering trade marks for agricultural products. We carried out a broad survey on the agriculture resource of the province and accelerated the registration of geographical indications marks and agricultural product trademarks and thus the project of enriching the peasants with trademarks achieved periodic progress. 13 pieces of agricultural product having special character were determined to apply for registering geographical indications. Six geographical indications were registered and 304 agricultural products trademarks were resisted. The accumulated registered agricultural product trademark of the province reached 4,473 up to now.
In field of protection over trade mark administrative enforcement of law, we established and modified the long-term management mechanism to regulate the behavior of using trademarks, and stressed the governance over trademark violations. We speeded up the shifting forward of the supervision link in trademark administration. We establish the trademark administration institution for commercial enterprises and the filing institution of trademark using for specialist stores, specialist repair shops and chain stores. We concentrated carried out special protection action over trademark right and did stressed check-ups over the trade mark applying for such commodities as grain, meat, vegetables, fruits, milk products, bean products, aquatic products, drinks, wines and drugs in such special protection actions as “Market Order Rectifying on Festivals”, “Food Safety Project”, “Cracking Down on Fake Goods and Protecting the Peasants” and etc. 673 different trademark violation cases were investigated and punished, 5.2 million Yuan violation money were forfeited and 80,000 trade mark logos were capture and thus powerfully attacked the criminal counterfeiting of registered trade marks and maintained a fairly competitive market order in the province the whole year.
4. Copyright
In 2007, copy right administrative departments at different levels of the province, taking the “4.26” World Intellectual Property Day as a chance, continued to carry out manifold copy right protection propaganda activities with varied contents to further enhance the social and public copyright protection consciousness, to enhance the consciousness and function of social management and public service for copyright administrative departments, and to develop the channels of copyright protection. Copyright protection working stations were established in regions where there are developed copy right industry and more copyright problems such as Shenyang Hunnan New District and Northeast Finance & Economy University and in this innovative way to protect copyright. Copyright administrative enforcement of law and copy right protection was carried on. Copy right administrative departments at different levels of the province organized and curried out special actions to attack the illegally preloaded computer software and network pirated version. The operation of special actions strengthened the protection over copy right and cracked down on the violation and pirated versions.
In 2007, copyright administrative departments of the province checked 57,939 business units, gave 2,733 of them administrative punishment for their violation and still 5 of them constituted criminal offense. Two million pirated CD were captured. In the attack against illegally preloaded computer software, more than 2,260 persons (times) law enforcement officials participated in and 340 business units (times) were checked, more than 4,000 pirated software discs were captured, 11 business units received punishment for their sales of preloaded pirated computer software: eight of them were warned and other three were ordered to stop operation. In the special attack against network pirated version 17 cases were investigated and punished by administrative departments in the province.
5. Audio and video Product
In 2007, cultural administrative departments at different levels of the province enhanced the administrative enforcement of law over the audio-video product market and maintained the business order thereof, achieved a healthy development for the audio-video product industry. In accordance with the unified plan of the Ministry of Culture, a campaign of “Protecting Intellectual Property, Attacking Pirated Things Everyday” was carried out. Audio-video product market was rectified in three ways: attacking the source of violation, clamping down the nomadic traders, establishing regulations and institutions. Supervision and control over sales of audio-video product were stressed in problem prone areas such as software market, electronic product market, peripheral regions of schools and universities, intersectional areas between city and country, and rural areas. During the time of festivals the supervision and control over cultural market were enhanced and thus on one hand, demand of people toward culture and recreation was satisfied in holidays and on the other hand a healthy order was guaranteed for cultural market. 85 audio-video product business units in all the 14 cities of the province were checked through secret investigation to the audio-video product market. The concentrated law enforcement achieved a substantial result.
A number of serious cases of illegal business on sales of audio-video product were investigated and punished. In the beginning of the year an illegal business case was cracked as being informed by masses and seized more than 20,000 pirated MPEG4 CDs, the criminal suspect was caught red-handed and had been investigated for criminal liability. This case was the major one cracked in our province in MPEG4 pirated CD sales. The seized pirated MPEG4 CDs are all double-sided burning ones and on each CD more than 100 movie programmers and 3,200 songs can be recorded, their capacity is 100 times larger than common DVD. This was an extremely serious infringement case.
In early December, more than 70,000 pirated CDs were seized in a resident house in Xinggongbeijie, Tiexi District, Shenyang. 4,000 CDs among them involved photography and obscenity. The criminal suspect was captured by the police and the case is still under investigation.
In 2007, more than 140,000 person-times of law-enforcement officials from cultural administrative enforcement of law at different levels of the province proceeded and investigated more than 92,000 cultural business firm-times, seized 2.4 million pieces of illegally made audio-video product. Heavily attacked the flames of those who violated the law. Illegal business on pirated audio-video product was contained and the cultural marked was purified.
6. New Plant Variety
In 2007 the agricultural system of the province continued to enhance the propaganda and training on the protection against the right of new plant variety. The stress was given on the propagations of knowledge and policy of protecting new plant variety. Training courses were held on knowing the distinction between variety right and variety accreditation, the difference between variety transfer and variety right license, the relationship between the applicator and culture, and other matters on new plant variety protection. These courses helped modify applying quality of owner of variety right and the law enforcement level. Seeds administrations at different levels of the province continued to enhance the new plant variety protection. They checked the seeds market in spring and autumn when seeds were sold and purchased like hot cakes. Punishment was done legally on violations.
In 2007 the forestry system of the province enhanced the protection against new forestry plant variety. Work was done on the following matters: propaganda and popularization of knowledge of protection against new forestry plant variety, administrative low enforcement development, policy making to encourage development and applying of new variety, enhancing international cooperation on new variety protection and development of variety right intermediate organizations. All these played an important role to guarantee the forest production and to promote the economic development.
7. Science & Technology System
In 2007 the science and technology system of the province further put various laws and regulations on intellectual property into practice and the work of intellectual property administration was attached great importance. Organizational and functional development on intellectual property in scientific and technological enterprises was enhanced. Intellectual property index was intensified in such links as scientific and technological project approval, evaluation and acceptance check and etc. Proprietary innovation was stressed and the quantity of propriety intellectual property was evidently increased in scientific and technological innovation. Intellectual property conversion achieved greater progress and thus promoted the economic development of the province.
8. Foreign Trade System
No direct fuzzy event for intellectual property was taken place in export of the province by the end of 2007. But since this kind of fuzzy event generally influences the whole product link of the involved product, so its chain effect and indifference effect must give a certain indirect influence upon related enterprises in our province. Furthermore, there are problems of intellectual property protection in the enterprises of our province like domestic enterprises in other provinces, so it is inevitable of the occurrence of international intellectual property fuzzy event. The export enterprises in our province have come to notice this and have started work to make response and be ready to solve problems of fuzzy event. The development of proprietary intellectual property was stressed and tried to implement the strategy of famous brand product and to encourage famous brand products to be exported. Gradually develop such famous brand products having international fame and change the situation of intellectual property protection from passive pattern to initiative pattern.
9. Cultivation of Intellectual Property Talents
In 2007 the intellectual property talent team and policy development of the province was enhanced. The engagement of post-doctoral talents was an important thing in attracting and cultivating intellectual property talents. Special support and financing were given to post-doctoral positions to attract talent from all over the country to Liaoning for post-doctoral research and practice. Took the “Hundred, Thousand, Ten Thousand” project as an important carrier for cultivating senior class intellectual property talent. Laid priority on intellectual property talents during the candidate appraisal and project financing evaluation for the “Hundred, Thousand, Ten Thousand” project. Took intellectual property talents as important constitutional part to develop innovation teams. Promoted mutual learning, mutual benchmarking and joint progressing among senior intellectual property talents by means of undertaking project or cooperative research. A group of internationally first class, middle-aged and young intellectual property talents should be cultivated. Took the work on overseas scholars as an important channel for cultivating and attracting intellectual property talents and took intellectual property talents as key candidates to introduce and dispatch internationally. Learn the experience and outstanding practice over the work on intellectual property from foreign countries and train intellectual property talents to let them to be qualified internationally. Trainings were enhanced to improve quality and capability of intellectual property workers and surrounding the project of “Knowledge Regeneration for Senior and Middle Class Technical Personnel in Liaoning Province” (“5520” project), public demanded continuing educations which take intellectual property and proprietary innovation capability development and exercise as major content were carried out. The teacher-training classes and modeling training classes cultivated 70 backbone teachers for different cities of the province and 1,100 technical professionals for province subordinated organizations.
10. Customs House
Shenyang and Dalian Customs Houses further enhanced the organizing and leading over intellectual property protection in 2007. Shenyang Customs House established an institution of “listening to intellectual property protection periodically by the commissioner” to ensure the substantial implementation of intellectual property protection in the jurisdiction of the house. A perfect system of regulations and institutions was established and thus provided an insurance for a deepened promotion for intellectual property protection. Dalian Customs House set up a leading group of intellectual property protection over its jurisdiction so as to unified guide the implementation of intellectual property protection. The two customs houses continued to enhance the professional training over the front line officers, cultivated a highly qualified intellectual property protection law enforcement team at the last pass of import and export. The law enforcement capability of the front line officers was further increased through learning special law, cooperating with well-known enterprises and special training on method of distinguishing true or false product and thus laid a foundation for the deep attacking against intellectual property violation. The two houses continued the enhancement on the propaganda and service for the intellectual property protection. Shenyang Customs House enlarged the propaganda effect by multiple ways, especially by using the influence of news media. The activity of “Law Propagation in Enterprises and Service Providing where You are” was carried out and actively went to enterprises to introduce the intellectual property protection by the customs and to find out the demand of the enterprises, to listen to their suggestions so as to jointly protect the legal right and profit of enterprises. Dalian Customs House held the 6th Recruitment Seminar on Foreign Policies to explain laws and regulations of intellectual property protection by the customs, especially the procedure, and mode of customs protection toward enterprises. Printed materials of propagation were released in the seminar. This seminar improved the consciousness of safeguarding their rights and the lawful conscientiousness of the enterprises attending the seminar.
In 2007 Shenyang Customs House determined the well known brand trademark protection as key task, took daily use commodities such as costumes, suitcases, watches and drugs as key goals and took mail and travel inspection channels as stressed scope, took serious violation cases which have strong response and bad details as breakthrough, so as to attack the inbound and outbound intellectual property violations with full strength, 30 cases of violation were captured and 13,802 pieces of pirated commodity were seized last year. Dalian Customs House seriously deployed the “Dragon Boat Action” of the General Administration Customs and each business spot enhanced the risk analysis and check-ups for import and export goods, strengthened attacking the violations via luggage mail and travel channels. In luggage mail channel three successive check-ups in 15 days captured 8,000 pellets of Viagra mailing to Japan and further, 156 pirated CDs and 660 pellets of Viagra were captured at the year end. In the freight channel a case which involves violation of copy right and the biggest case of copy right violation of the customs system this year was captured, involving 535 boxes of wooden handicraft articles valued at more than 300,000 Yuan. In 2007 Dalian Customs House investigated and punished 18 cases of intellectual property violation involving viagra, watches, bags, CD with a total value of more than 1.6 million Yuan. The two customs houses both had achieved evident effect in intellectual property protection with their investigated and prosecuted cases were increased in large numbers.
11. Intellectual Property Protection by Criminal Enforcement
In 2007, the public security administrations of the province continued to enhance the detection to criminal cases involving violating intellectual property and actively supported such administrations as in the intellectual property, industrial and commercial, copyright, culture, tobacco and etc. and carried out special check-ups and rectifying actions over such intellectual property commodity market as patent, trademark, cop right, software, audio-video product and tobacco and timely punished those cases involving criminal offence, legally and powerfully attacked offences violating intellectual property, investigated and prosecuted some major cases.
In May of 2007 in Down Western Life style Apartment in Tiexi District, Shenyang. Captured 12,060 bottles of diabetes medicine imitating the medicine of Beijing Double Crane Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. Named “Tangshiping” and some other medicines, involving more than one million Yuan and captured the criminal suspect named Chen.
In August 2007, intercepted a truck on Shenda Expressway and captured 35,446 cartons of cigarette valued around 1,60 million Yuan and, through further detection, discovered an internet case of illegally manufacturing and selling false cigarette involving 4.1 million Yuan and captured five criminal suspects.
After the detection in almost one year, a case in which the electronic product intellectual property of two American companies violated was prosecuted, false and imitative electronic products valued at more than ten million Yuan were detained successively and the criminal suspect was also captured. This case constructed a good international fame for the intellectual property protection of our province.
In 2007 the public security administrations registered 56 cases and cracked 48 cases which involved violation of intellectual property, manufacturing and selling false and imitative commodities and illegal business, captured 75 criminal suspects. The money amount involved in those cases reached 90 million Yuan.
12. Intellectual Property Protection by Justice
(1) Procuratorate Administrations of the Province
Situations of approval of arrest: in 2007, the procuratorate administrations of the province accepted 12 removal cases involving 14 criminal suspects of intellectual property violation from public security administrations. Twelve criminal suspects in ten cases were arrested after examination: including one false and imitative registered trademark case involving two criminal suspects and the two suspects being arrested; six cases of selling commodities using false and imitative trademarks involving 7 criminal suspects all being arrested; one case of illegally manufacturing and selling registered trademark identification involving one criminal suspect being arrested; two cases of violating business know-how involving two criminal suspects, one of them for one case being arrested; two cases of violating copyright involving two criminal suspects, one of them for one case being arrested.
Situations of indictment: in 2007 the procuratorate administrations of the province accepted and heard 16 removal cases of intellectual property violation involving 23 criminal suspects from the public security administrations. Among them, 11 cases involving 17 criminal suspects were indicated after examination: including four accepted cases of false and imitative trade marks involving 7 suspects and two cases and three suspects being indicted; six accepted cases of selling commodities using false and imitative trademarks involving seven suspects and four cases and four suspects being indicted; one accepted case of illegally manufacturing and selling illegally manufactured trademark identifications involving one suspect and two cases and two suspects being indicted; two accepted cases of violating business know-how involving two criminal suspects and three cases and eight suspects being indicted; three accepted cases of copyright violation involving six criminal suspects.
(2) Court
In 2007, courts at different levels of the province continued to enhance the judgment on intellectual property cases and put the “Implementation Draft of Liaoning Provincial Higher Court on Further Enhancing Judicial Protection against Intellectual Property” into practice. Realized the announcement over the internet of the intellectual property judgment document on an overall basis. Efforts were made to receive social supervisions and increased the transparency in intellectual property judgment and legally and heavily punished the intellectual property violations and thus guanteed the legal right and profit of intellectual property owners and strengthened the judicial authority, and established a steady image for the intellectual property protection in our province.
In 2007, courts in the province accepted in total 600 first and second instance cases on intellectual property disputes, 469 cases were settled down resulting a settlement rate of 78.2%. The newly accepted first instance intellectual property cases this year reached 461, including 97 cases of patent disputes, 105 cases of trademark disputes, 180 cases of copy right disputes, seven cases of unfair competition, 23 cases of technical contract disputes and 49 cases of other intellectual property. In order to protect the legal right of litigants to a maximal limit, courts tried strictly to control the boundary of judgment, stressed on mediation. The mediation and law suit withdrawal rate of the courts of the province reached as high as 39%.
Accepted and concluded nine criminal cases of intellectual property violation, involving 16 accused persons, among them: one cache and one person involved in false and imitative register trademarks, three cases and five persons involved in selling false and imitative registered trademarks, two cases and two persons involved in illegally manufacturing false and imitative registered trademarks, and three cases and eight persons involved in violating business know-how.
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