China IP Updates: September 2021 (Issue 4)

Laws and Regulations

State Council of the People's Republic of China Issues Guidelines for Building a Powerful Intellectual Property Nation (2021-2035)

中共中央 国务院发布《知识产权强国建设纲要（2021－2035年）》

Date: 2021-09-22

State Council of the People's Republic of China issues Guidelines for Building a Powerful Intellectual Property Nation (2021-2035) (“the Guidelines”), in an effort to build China to be a powerful intellectual property nation and to comprehensively improve the standard of intellectual property creation, application, protection, management and services, the Guideline states:

1. Building an intellectual property (IP) system for the modernization of socialism through:
   1. Conducting fundamental legal research on IP.
   2. Integrating the specialized laws and regulations.
   3. Enhancing the applicability and uniformity of laws and regulations.
   4. Optimizing the management system.
   5. Strengthening the authority of the central government in relation to the following aspects of IP protection: macro management, regional coordination, and coordination of foreign related matters.
   6. Strengthening institutional infrastructure.
   7. Improving management efficiency.
   8. Adhering to the nation's policy for strict IP protection.
   9. Perfecting the mechanism for allocating IP rights and interests.
   10. Completing the resource allocation system to increase knowledge value.
   11. Promoting the realization of IP value.
   12. Constructing a system that offers prompt response and reasonable protection for IP in the emerging fields and specific areas
2. Building an intellectual property protection system that supports an international first-class business environment through:
   1. Establishing high level IP adjudication institutions.
   2. Improving the infrastructure for court proceedings, institutional mechanisms, and construction of technology courts.
   3. Building an administrative enforcement and supervision platform for IP rights.
   4. Enhancing the modernization and technological level in IP enforcement and supervision.
   5. Completing the testing and evidence appraisal systems for IP infringement disputes.
   6. Utilising the administrative adjudication system for IP infringement disputes.
   7. Intensifying the enforcement of administrative adjudication.
   8. Upholding the centralized and unified leadership under the Communist Party of China.
   9. Implementing IP protection policy by: government duly performing its duties, enforcement agencies being closed supervised, judicial organ administering justice impartially, trade associations self-governing, social public having integrity and being law-abiding.
3. Building an intellectual property market operation mechanism that stimulates innovation and development through:
   1. Reforming and improving the assessment and evaluation mechanism of intellectual property with quality and value as the standard.
   2. Strengthening the cultivation of patent-intensive industries.
   3. Establishing an investigation mechanism for patent-intensive industries.
   4. Improving the level of intellectual property agency in various aspects including legal, information and consulting services.
   5. Supporting the development of value-added services such as intellectual property asset evaluation, trading, transformation, trusteeship and investment and financing.
4. Building a public service system of intellectual property for the convenience and benefit of the people through:
   1. Improving the national intellectual property data center and public service platform.
   2. Expanding the depth and breadth of transparency for various types of basic intellectual property information.
   3. Clarifying the matters and scope of IP public services.
   4. Strengthening the formulation of IP data standards and the supply of IP data.
5. Building an environment that promotes the high-quality development of intellectual property through:
   1. Developing national high-end intellectual property think tanks and those with special characteristics.
   2. Deepening theoretical and policy research.
   3. Strengthening international academic exchanges.
   4. Implementing training programs for specialized talents in intellectual property.
   5. Relying on the plans from the relevant universities for national IP talent bases.
   6. Strengthening the construction of second tier intellectual property institutes in relevant universities.
6. Deepening the participation in global intellectual property governance thru:
   1. Actively participating in the reform and construction of the global governance system of intellectual property.
   2. Building a multilateral and bilateral coordination network for international cooperation.
   3. Providing diversified services such as patent search, examination and training to countries and regions under the One Belt One Road Initiatives.

Source:  https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/art/2021/9/22/art_53_170293.html

CNIPA Interpreted Administrative Adjudication Measures for Early Resolution Mechanism of Drug Disputes
国知局解读《药品专利纠纷早期解决机制行政裁决办法》

Date：2021-09-18

In order to implement the decisions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council in establishing an early resolution mechanism for drug patent disputes in China, according to the relevant provisions of the Patent Law, combined with the jointly formulated provisions of the "Implementation Measures for Early Resolution Mechanism for Drug Patent Disputes (Trial Implementation)" by CNIPA and the National Medical Products Administration, the CNIPA conducted a careful study on the specific system of the early resolution mechanism for drug patent disputes, drawing on relevant international practices. Combining with China's national conditions and the development characteristics of the pharmaceutical industry at the present stage, the CNIPA formulated the "Administrative Ruling Measures for Early Resolution Mechanism for Drug Patent Disputes".

There are 24 articles in the Measures, which stipulate the subject of request for administrative ruling, the scope of drug patents that can be ruled upon, coordination with judicial organs, the relationship between administrative rulings and invalidation procedures, the execution and disclosure of administrative rulings, the judicial review of administrative rulings and other case handling procedures.

Source： https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/art/2021/9/18/art_66_170253.html

Case Spotlight

SPC Released Model Cases Concerning Typical Anti-monopoly and Anti-unfair Competition

最高院发布反垄断和反不正当竞争典型案例

Date: 2021-09-27

The Supreme People's Court held a press conference to report the adjudication of anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition cases of the People's Courts since 2018 and released model cases of anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition.

According to the report, from 2018 to 2020, the national courts received a total of 14,736 new civil cases of unfair competition in the first and second instance, and concluded 13,946 cases, with an average annual increase of 18%; 158 new civil cases relating to monopolies in the first and second instance, and concluded 189 cases (including the old existing cases), with an average of concluding over 60 cases per year. In the same period, the national courts at all levels received a total of 897 civil cases of monopoly and concluded 844 cases. with the annual number of cases concluded rising from 6 in 2008 to 107 in 2020, an increase of 16.8 times in 12 years.

The ten model cases released this time involve both people's welfare (such as water supply) and high-tech areas (such as standard-essential patents). The cases Include the traditional cases of trade secrets infringement, unfair competition, and monopolistic behavior such as abuse of dominant market position. The cases also respond timely to the identification of new types of unfair competition such as paid reviews disguised as genuine customer reviews and ad-blocking of videos.

The ten model cases are:

1. “Cross cut saw”: dispute of technical trade secrets infringement (“优选锯”侵害技术秘密纠纷案)
   2. “Bevo”: dispute of licensing contract for use of technological trade secret (“必沃”技术秘密许可使用合同纠纷案)
   3.”iQiyi account”: unfair competition dispute (“爱奇艺账号”不正当竞争纠纷案)
   4. “Lufax financial services platform”: unfair competition dispute (“陆金所金融服务平台”不正当竞争纠纷案)
   5. “720 Internet Browser”: unfair competition dispute (“720浏览器”不正当竞争纠纷)
   6. “Wechat group control system”: unfair competition dispute (“微信群控”不正当竞争纠纷案)
   7. Digital Push company and Tan: unfair competition dispute (数推公司、谭某不正当竞争纠纷案)
   8. “Water supply company”: dispute over abuse of dominant market position (“供水公司”滥用市场支配地位纠纷案)
   9. “Brick and tile association”: monopoly dispute (“砖瓦协会”垄断纠纷案)
   10. Sisvel: dispute over abuse of dominant market position (西斯威尔滥用市场支配地位纠纷案)

Source: http://www.court.gov.cn/zixun-xiangqing-324721.html

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.