The Chinese Government is planning a way to help domestic academic
and industrial researchers seek patent protections abroad.
The State Intellectual
Protection Office (SIPO) said it will announce detailed
measures soon.
"High-tech research findings in China that have huge potential on
the world market must be protected," said SIPO commissioner Wang
Jingchuan Tuesday.
Wang said the efforts will help cushion the challenges China faces
now that it is a member of the World
Trade Organization (WTO).
"It is helpful for China to improve international competitiveness
of its high-tech products," said Wang in a work report presented on
the opening day of a three-day National Patent Conference.
Chinese applicants delivered 1,026 applications for patent
protections in foreign countries, almost three times the average of
the prior 15 years, SIPO statistics indicate. The 2001 figure is
expected to double from that.
"We have achieved a lot in the past two years, but we are still
lagging behind, in comparison with developed countries," Wang
said.
Vice-Premier Wen Jiabao sent a congratulatory letter to the
conference Tuesday, calling on the nation to step up efforts to
protect intellectual property rights.
"Intellectual property protection has become another focus of
competition as the world is becoming globalized," Wen said in the
letter.
Wang's office will work with central and local authorities to beef
up intellectual property rights in China and abroad. Authorities of
various industries and enterprises also will be involved, Wang
said.
Wang said his office and other departments will select some key
research projects in the industries which are of key importance to
the State's economic development. Those will be the focus of
special protection efforts.
He
said China's new legislation on intellectual property rights meets
the standards set in the WTO, so now the goal must be to beef up
enforcement.
He
called for more efforts to deepen awareness of technology
innovation and patent protection.
Although the country has made significant progress in patent
protection since it implemented the Patent Law in 1985, some
companies and research institutes still ignore patent
applications.
"To help domestic enterprises meet global competition, we must help
them know how to combine intellectual property rights protection
with technology development," he said.
(China
Daily December 26, 2001)