Revised law to come into effect in 2021

China's amended Patent Law, after its fourth revision, is scheduled to come into force on June 1, 2021, and will provide rights owners with stronger protection, experts said. Partial designs have been added to the law's protection portfolio. That means improvements to part of a product,

such as shoe soles, cup handles, mouse wheels and cellphone screens, will be able to be protected as industrial design patents. The move brings the law in line with international practices, as partial designs are already under protection in the United States, Japan and the European Union. Industrial designs, as one of three patent types in China, each have a 10-year protection term, but the period will be expanded to 15 years after the new law comes into effect. The changes are a key approach to intellectual property protection and can better balance the interests of rights holders and those of the public, said an official with the National Intellectual Property Administration...

WIPO arbitration and mediation center in Shanghai established

The Shanghai Municipal Justice Bureau announced on Thursday that the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)'s Shanghai Center for Arbitration and Mediation has been officially established and put into operation. This is the first business institution set up by an

arbitration institution affiliated to an international organization in China, according to the bureau. Located at Jinmao Tower in Pudong district's Lujiazui financial area, the center will carry out arbitration and mediation of foreign-related IP disputes that take place in China. It can accept and mediate disputes, organize hearings and announce verdicts. It can also provide business consultation and guidance as well as organize business seminars, training, and exchanges...

Beijing Customs makes major counterfeit bust

Beijing Customs recently solved the biggest case of intellectual property rights infringement since the beginning of this year, with the seizure of more than 60,000 counterfeit items, the General Administration of Customs said. The seized goods, including glasses,

bags, clothing and sneakers, allegedly infringed on 18 famous trademarks already registered at the administration, such as Gucci, LV and Chanel, according to a statement posted by the authority on its official WeChat account. It said the products were declared by a company in Linyi, Shandong province, for export and seized at Beijing Capital International Airport on Sept 30...

Agricultural tech fair opens in Shaanxi

An agricultural technology training demonstration base was unveiled on Thursday at the 27th China Yangling Agricultural Hi-tech Fair, an annual promotion and exhibition for agricultural development in Shaanxi province. The fair was organized in conjunction with the Shanghai

Cooperation Organization and hosted by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, China National Intellectual Property Administration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Shaanxi provincial government. It will run until Monday. Six indoor and outdoor exhibition halls and display areas with more than 2,000 stands were installed at the fair, in a total exhibition area of 160,000 square meters. This year also marks the first year that the fair is being held both online and offline. Themed "Technological innovation leads to high-quality growth", the fair will feature more than 100 activities and attract participants from 70 countries...