China investigates over 50,000 items of trademark related cases

On the occasion of two anniversaries of the implementation of Outline on National IP Strategy, the reporter learnt from the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) that last year, China investigated 51,044 items of cases related to trademarks, decreasing by 9.87%, indicating the improvement of the protection environment of trademark exclusive rights.

According to the relevant principal of the Trademark Office, in 2009, the applications for trademark registration reached 830,500 items, up 18.96% and reaching the record high.

As of the end of 2009, the accumulated number of the filings for trademark registration was 7,222,500 items, the accumulated amount of trademark registrations was 4,278,800 items and the number of effective registered trademarks was 3,404,500 items. It is learnt that the trademark registration applications, the examined trademark registration and effective registered trademarks all topped the world.

Influenced by the global financial moil, the filings for trademark registration in the world notably decreased. In China, due to the strong response of the economy and the implementation of trademark strategy across the nation, the awareness of the whole society in trademark use was universally improved, which created a favorable condition for the building of innovation-oriented country.

According to the principal of the Trademark Office, this year China will build a long term mechanism to curb trademark infringing behaviors and an assorted mechanism to investigate trademark cases across the nation, and particularly strengthened the protection to well-known trademarks and famous trademarks. The Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce will make full use of China’s administrative and judicial protection, closely assorted with the public security departments, Customs, copyright section and patent governmental departments to better the collaboration mechanism on inter-departmental trademark enforcement.

Besides, China will build and consummate the overseas safeguarding mechanism for trademarks. The Trademark Office will reinforce collaboration with related departments such as Ministry of Commerce, gradually establish swift communication mechanism with the trademark authorities and judicial organs of other countries and regions to strengthen the protection of Chinese trademark overseas.

On June 5, 2008, China issued Outline on National IP Strategy, nailing down that till 2020, China will develop into a country with higher level in IPR creation, use, protection and management, the level of indigenous intellectual property rights will be greatly raised within five years, the effect of using IP rights will be obviously enhanced, the IP protection will be distinctly improved and the IP awareness of the society will be universally lifted.