China Vows to Speed Up Building an IP Power

The State Council recently issued Opinion on Accelerating the Building of IP Power under New Conditions, vowing to thoroughly implement national IP strategy, deepen reform in IP key areas, carry out more rigid IP protection, promote the development in new technology, new industry and new commercial formats, enhance industrial internationalization development level, safeguard and encourage mass entrepreneurship and innovation. By 2020, decisive achievements will be made in IP key areas and links, the environment for entrepreneurship and innovation will be further improved, getting a new advantage in global IP competition, laying a solid foundation for China to be a world-class IP power with Chinese characteristics.

The opinion proposes sticking with four basic principles, namely, strategic guidance, reform and innovation, market orientation and overall consideration. It also clarified five major measures: promoting reform in IP administration system and mechanism, carrying our rigid IP protection, promoting IP creation and utilization, strengthening overseas IP layout and risk prevention in key industries, enhancing international cooperation level in IP field.

The opinion points out that efforts should be made to refine IP administration system, authorize local governments to carry out reform experiment in IP field, encourage eligible places to introduce integrated IP management reform pilot, build an IP reviewing mechanism in key economic activities, promote reform in patent license system, conduct online registration, E-filing and paperless examination, speed up building a top-notch patent examination office.

Under the opinion, efforts should be made to step up punishment on IP infringement, improve IP protection mechanism featuring a cohesive combination of administrative enforcement and judicial protection, incorporate IP infringement into credit record of enterprises and individuals, establish a fair environment for entrepreneurship, innovation and business operation. Efforts should also be made to strengthen IP protection in new industries, promote research on rules of IP protection in Internet, E-commerce and big data field, formulate policies related to IP protection on mass entrepreneurship, crowd-sourcing, collective support and crowd funding. 

The opinion requires building a more fair and reasonable international IP rules, beefing up international cooperation mechanism, expanding IP public diplomacy, strengthening overseas IP layout in key areas, improving  assessment and warning of IP risk, promoting domestic industry integrated into global industry chain, value chain and innovation chain.

The opinion also calls for establishment of a reviewing system on innovation-driven development featuring IP. Incorporate products related to IP into the System of National Economic Accounting. Include index of IP into national economic and social development program, while making appraisal on the performance of the party and government leaders, focus on factors such as innovation stimulation and IP protection. Explore establishment of an evaluation mode of State-owned enterprises, paying equal attention to business performance, IP and innovation of enterprises.

(Source: China IP News)