Managing Intellectual Property Briefing China February

Howard H.L. Tsang of Wilkinson & Grist is briefing about 3 topics for Managing Intellectual Property.

Firstly, Tsang wrote about the continuing legal struggle over Beijing Silk Market:
Last December 2005, Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court ruled that Beijing Xiushi Haosen Clothing Market Co Ltd., the landlord of Beijing Silk Market was an accomplice in IP infringement.

"By renting space to the operators, the landlord was "willfully providing convenient conditions" to them and thus in breach of Art 50(1) of the Implementing Regulations of the Trade Mark Law."
Now the landlord is appealing the ruling, "because it is not an enforcement body and has no duty to monitor the market and no power to stop any infringement."

See more about the Beijing Silk Market case here and here.

Secondly, he wrote about the Chinese Trade Mark Office. December 26, 2005 it has put online this database were you can search all Chinese registered/applied for trade marks.

Thirdly, Tsang wrote about well-known marks:
98 newly recognized well-known marks in China (however of these 98 marks, only five are foreign marks);
77 marks were recognized in enforcement cases by the Administration for Industry and Commerce (AIC);
10 marks in opposition proceedings by the Trade Mark Office;
11 marks by the Trade Mark Review and Adjudication Board in dispute proceedings.

Read more here.