Have a look at this business guide from the US Department of Commerce, for companies wishing to protect their IPR in China. Each country runs by its own rules, together with such international undertakings as it is willing to give; and China's approach to this subject is by no means unique; but it gives one pause for thought. Here's a couple of tasters:
On average, 20 percent of all consumer products in the Chinese market are counterfeit. If a product sells, it is likely to be illegally duplicated...
There are several factors that undermine enforcement measures, including China’s reliance on administrative instead of criminal measures to combat IPR infringements...
Patents: China follows a first to file system for patents, which means patents are granted to those that file first even if the filers are not the original inventors...
Trademarks: China has a ‘first-to register’ system that requires no evidence of prior use or ownership, leaving registration of popular foreign marks open to third party...
Copyright: Unlike the patent and trademark protection, copyrighted works do not require registration for protection...
As I said in an earlier post, there may be more to argue about on the first two headings. Yes, there is some system of investigation and redress, but it doesn't necessarily have the rigour and powerful enforcement that Americans would expect in the USA.
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