Beijing Olympics prompts clampdown on fakes
China's National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) is running a special IP protection campaign to suppress infringements associated with the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.
The campaign aims to tackle the unauthorised use of the Olympics logo and athlete names in advance of the games in February, reported Chinese media yesterday, December 9.
According to the article by China Daily, the campaign was jointly launched by the State Administration for Market Regulation in October and will last until the end of June.
Zhang Zhichang, head of CNIPA's IP department, reportedly told a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday that the campaign will also help ensure the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics can be run smoothly.
He added that those who infringe patents or trademarks involving Olympic symbols would be penalised, emphasising the need to step up inspections of places that produce or sell Olympic products as well as e-commerce retailers.
Zhang said that the CNIPA also plans to develop a better awareness of IP by creating a quick response system where people can cite and share evidence of infringements.
He noted: “The campaign will improve public awareness of the need to respect IP rights concerning the Winter Olympics, and it will also contribute to helping our country establish a good image of strictly protecting IP rights in the world."
This development comes in the wake of China’s efforts to enhance its IP protections, amid criticism from the US government on the level of protection offered to foreign companies operating in the world’s second-biggest economy.
Back in March, the CNIPA unveiled a plan to combat trademark squatting, announcing that its ‘ Special Action Plan for Combating Malicious Trademark Squatting’ identified ten ‘malicious’ acts that constitute infringement or squatting. Among these are acts of registering trademarks of famous logos, names, places and events.
A month later, the Chinese government confirmed that its next five-year plan, running from 2021-25, and longer-term strategy would include stronger IP rules.
Reforms to the country’s patent system entered force on June 1, and include higher damages awards for infringement and expedited enforcement procedures.
During this week’s conference, CNIPA spokesperson Hu Wenhui said that the office had identified 815,000 improper patent applications, and cancelled 376,000 malicious trademark registrations in 2021, reported China Daily.
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