Focus: 7
Lead division: intellectual property protection division
01
Seven priorities
The national intellectual property authority regularly provides customs with trademarks, patent base data, shares well-known trademark recognition information, withdraws or invalidates trademark information, administrative decisions on major patent infringement disputes; it regularly provides customs protection files to the national intellectual property authorityTrademark patentsData and information on cases of confiscation. The parties inform each other about the trade marks, patent administration and enforcement responses。
Investigation assistance intellectual property authorities may request customs assistance in cases of infringement of goods in connection with import or export; customs investigations of detained suspected goods may request the assistance of intellectual property authorities; patent infringement cases involving specialized technical matters are referred to experts such as technical investigators, as required by customs。
Customs cases are handled with due reference to the standards of tort judgement established by the national intellectual property agency and administrative responses, administrative decisions; in the case of a determination of the same commodity, similar goods, the same trademark, similar trademarks, patent infringement, etc., the same intellectual property authority may be consulted and the other party shall respond promptly and give a professional opinion。
Focus areasProtection encourages rights holders of prominent trademark recognition records, collective trademarks/proven trademarks, photovoltaics, etc. Registered as geographical indications to apply to customs for filing of intellectual property rights; after filing, customs enhances protection in the light of the results of national industrial policy and risk analysis。
• conduct, in due course, research on trademarks, patent dilemmas, joint research on major dilemmas, and regular business exchanges to promote the application of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, etc. In intellectual property protection。
Training and awareness-raising。
Assessment of incentives and penalties regular evaluation of the effectiveness of protection, commendation of prominent collective and individual communications, and reminder of weak work。
Content interpretation
Protection and investigative assistance in the areas of focus is the most immediate part of the seven work with enterprises. Enterprises with well-known trademark recognition records, geographical indications of priority industries such as collective trademarks/confirmations of trademarks, photovoltaics, etc., are explicitly encouraged to go to customs for intellectual property filing; after filing, customs is strengthened in the context of industrial policy and risk analysis. Information on which trademarks have been revoked or invalid is now shared。
02
Landing arrangements for collaborative mechanisms
The directorate of intellectual property protection of the national intellectual property agency and the directorate of integrated operations of the general customs administration are the lead organizations。
The two parties establish a regularized liaison mechanism, which identifies the focal points for day-to-day communication, and the sub-provincial intellectual property authorities and the immediate customs authorities, which will be responsible for the designation of the focal points, as required。
Information sharing is premised on data security and long-lasting mechanisms for cooperation in data-sharing applications。
Together, it promotes the development of intellectual property information and improves the functionality of data sharing。
Content interpretation
Collaboration mechanisms are located at the national level, led by the department of intellectual property protection and the directorate of integrated operations of the general customs administration, to establish a regularized liaison mechanism and focal points, and below the provincial level are local intellectual property authorities and direct customs interfaces and designated focal points. Enterprises encounter cross-sectoral problems and find corresponding contact points at this level。
03
Four areas of business concern
The national intellectual property authority regularly provides customs with trademarks, patent base data and facilitates the processing of customs records by rights holders。
The determination of infringement following the seizure of goods by customs is professionally supported and the professional opinions of technical investigators and peer-level intellectual property authorities are accessible。
Training in foreign-related intellectual property protection to support the exit of enterprises。
Standards convergence trademarks, patent tort judgement criteria tend to be harmonized between the two sectors。
Content interpretation
For enterprises: better documentation, professional support for rights, training for export compliance, convergence of enforcement standards. In enterprises that are already exporting, the most worthwhile time is to complete customs records. The exchange of trainers between the ipr administration and customs to provide training on the protection of iprs in foreign countries means, for enterprises, that more specialized guidance on ipr compliance is available in the process of " going out " 。
