Editor’s Note: The World Expo (Expo) will be held in Shanghai on May 1^st, 2010. The world’s largest comprehensive trade fair, which lasts 184 days, will be the best opportunity for countries to demonstrate their strengths. The protection of intellectual property (IP) is always one of the top priorities, and the Expo is no exception. Furthermore, as the latest products from around the world gather in Shanghai, IP protection will be a test for the Chinese government and the judiciary departments. At the outset of the New Year, the initial issue of this Magazine will publish a special article provided by the Shanghai Intellectual Property Administration (SIPA) and authored by Lü Guoqiang, Secretary General of Shanghai Intellectual Property Joint Conference and Director General of the SIPA. The article will narrate the developments of IP protection in Shanghai since the city’s bid to host the Expo, and any difficulties encountered. The Magazine will keep a close eye continuously on the IP protection of Shanghai World Expo in 2010, so please stay tuned.

Shanghai has been active in carrying out IP protection since the successful bid of the Expo. There are mainly five areas as follows:

Since the successful bid of the World Expo, the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, the SIPA, Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce, the Shanghai Copyright Bureau, the Legislative Affairs Office of Shanghai Municipal People’s Government, in cooperation with relevant State departments, have been drafting and promoting releases of a number of rules, regulations and relevant documents in connection with IP protection at the World Expo. In 2004, Shanghai drafted the Regulation on Protection of World Expo Symbols which was adopted by the State Council; in 2006, the Shanghai World Expo Organizing Committee passed the Outline of 2010 Shanghai World Expo IP Protection, setting out ten concrete measures to strengthen IP protection at the Expo; in 2007, the International Expositions Bureau reviewed and passed special regulations, also on IP, of World Expo Shanghai 2010; in 2008, the SIPA, in cooperation with the State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO), formulated the Rules on Examining Design Patent Applications Related to World Expo Symbols.

According to relevant documents of the State Council and relevant state departments, the General Office of Shanghai Municipal People’s Government issued the Notice Regarding Protection of World Expo Symbols in Publicity Activities to Welcome the World Expo, further regulating uses of World Expo symbols in various publicity activities to welcome the World Expo. The General Office of Shanghai Intellectual Property Joint Conference issued the Special Action Plan on Protection of World Expo IP, stating major objectives, priorities, schedules and requirements of protection of Expo IP. The Guiding Group of Pilot Work on IP Protection in Shanghai Business Sector released a Notice on Strengthening Protection of Olympic Symbols and World Expo Symbols, expressly requiring the city’s commercial enterprises to strictly scrutinize relevant rights certificates and regulate their own advertising and other commercial activities in connection with World Expo symbols. The Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination released the Administrative Measures on Uses of World Expo Symbols, thereby ensuring efficient uses of IP rights of the Expo. The Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce promulgated the Regulations on Uses of World Expo Symbols in Advertisements, regulating uses of World Expo symbols in the city’s outdoor and mass media advertisements. The SIPA released the Rules on Patent Dispute Settlement by General IP Office of the Expo and sample texts for the Undertakings on IP Protection, spelling out detailed implementation measures for exhibition organizers to carry out IP protection and management before, during and after the exhibition. The promulgation of the above-mentioned rules, regulations and relevant documents has provided a system guarantee for IP protection at the World Expo.

The relevant State departments have always attached great importance to and shown strong support for IP protection at the World Expo. On May 6^th, 2008, the SIPO and the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government held a consultative conference on cooperation between the SIPO and the city, and agreed to deepen cooperation in six key areas including “strengthening IP protection at World Expo 2010 Shanghai China.” On July 16^th, 2009, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) and the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government endorsed the Cooperation Agreement on Joint Promotion of Organization Work of World Expo 2010 Shanghai China, clearly stating priorities of protection of Expo trademarks, and reached cooperation agreements on the establishment of coordination mechanism for protection of Expo symbols and Expo-related trademarks at national industrial and commercial sectors, and on launching of a “green channel” for changes of registered trademarks by Expo exhibitors. In July 2008, the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) and the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government jointly signed the Cooperation Framework Agreement between State Departments and the City, setting out six key areas in digital publishing cooperation between the State departments and the city, and proposing to work together to build a copyright public service platform in Shanghai with the view of ensuring a comprehensive strategic cooperation in digital publication and copyright between the GAPP and the city of Shanghai.

As the World Expo is just around the corner, Shanghai administrative law enforcement departments for IP protection have made great efforts to push forward with the key work of IP protection at the Expo, organize special actions, continuously ratchet up law enforcement efforts, and actively create a favorable environment for IP protection. In marking the 600-day countdown to the opening of the Expo, the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau, the Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce, the Shanghai Municipal Copyright Bureau, the SIPA, Shanghai Cultural Law Enforcement Team, and the Shanghai Municipal Law Enforcement Bureau of Urban Administration, Shanghai Customs, and other IP law enforcement departments made a 600-day Action Plan to Welcome the World Expo, and carried out IP law enforcement activities as planned. For example, the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau held a conference titled, “A Safe World Expo,” to deploy forces and carry out special operations through investigations to crack down upon criminal infringements of IP rights. The Shanghai Municipal Copyright Bureau launched a campaign to cleanse copyrights for the World Expo, focusing primarily on a crack-down on manufacturing and marketing hideouts for pirated products, and to inspect and block inbound and outbound pirated products at road crossings, packaging and consigning sites. Cultural law enforcement departments at Shanghai municipal and district levels launched “Welcome World Expo and Protect IP” special enforcement operations, confiscating more than 200,000 pirated discs and closing five dens of illegal audio-visual products within three days.

In July 2009, the General Office of Shanghai Intellectual Property Joint Conference formulated and issued the Special Action Plan for IP Protection of the World Expo, detailing IP protection plans at the World Expo from July 2009 to October 2010. Various law enforcement departments, 18 districts and counties from the city, in accordance with requirements of the Action Plan, worked out special action plans, organized large-scale campaigns to enhance law enforcement, and investigate and crack down upon acts of IP infringement of the Expo. The Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce formulated the Opinion on Implementation of Protection of Expo Trademarks, expressly stating the overall objectives, priorities and measures for protection of Expo trademarks. The Shanghai Municipal Law Enforcement Bureau of Urban Administration issued a Notice on Strengthening IP Protection of the World Expo, urging district and county-level law enforcement departments and the General Team of Municipal Law Enforcement in Urban Administration to list sites within and close to the Expo Park, urban areas and scenic spots as keys, and strictly crack down upon illegal activities, such as occupation of roads to sell infringing Expo symbols and Expo licensed products, and distribution of advertisements infringing Expo symbols.

In response to prominent cases of setting up stalls and peddling fake Haibaos on Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street, relevant departments in Huangpu district, such as the urban administration, industry and commerce, and public security, have launched intensive campaigns to stamp down on illegal activities of selling fake Haibaos and seized more than 10,000 fake Haibaos along the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street. Xuhui District government formulated, “special work plans to crack down upon dens of fakes close to Shanxinan Road and Huaihaizhong Road”, clearly stating that the housing management authority would penalize landlords who rented out public housing to “scalpers” as dens to manufacture fakes or force serious violators to terminate the lease contracts in accordance with the city’s housing lease regulations. Recently, departments in Xuhui District, such as the public security, industry and commerce, urban administration, have successively closed eight hideouts for selling fakes worth over 50 million Yuan.

Shanghai municipal justice departments have been active in conducting research to formulate relevant measures to provide judicial service and guarantee for IP protection of the World Expo. The Shanghai High People’s Court carried out special investigations into IP protection at the World Expo and released the Several Opinions on Active Service and Guarantee for World Expo 2010 by Shanghai Courts, proposing the establishment of a number of operational mechanisms in cases related to the Expo, including designated jurisdiction, integrated trial, management software and launch of sharing platforms. The Shanghai Municipal People’s Prosecution Service promulgated the Several Opinions on Serving and Guaranteeing the World Expo by Shanghai Prosecution Departments and will take various measures, such as strengthening organization and leadership and establishing a special system to handle Expo-related cases, and actively perform prosecution functions to serve and guarantee preparation and hosting of the World Expo.

Under the Special Action Plan on Protection of World Expo IP, the key of IP protection of the Expo will shift to IP service and guarantee work in the Expo Park, including formation and operation of on-the-site IP booths at the World Expo, and facilitating implementation of relevant service measures, from January to October 2010. At present the relevant preparatory work has already begun. For example, the SIPA, the Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce, and the Shanghai Municipal Copyright Bureau are drafting preparatory arrangements concerning assignment of administrative law enforcement personnel into the World Expo Park; Shanghai Customs has set up a “monitoring and service center in the Expo Park,” consisting of IP branches responsible for matters relating to IP protection; the Pudong New District Court has established an Expo tribunal, solely responsible for accepting, hearing and enforcing various criminal, IP and administrative cases that would occur during the hosting and evacuation of the World Expo.

Since the successful bid of the World Expo, Shanghai has attached great importance to promotion of IP protection at the Expo and launched a series of publicity activities. Forums on Expo and Rule of Law, themed IP protection of the Expo, have been convened many times to focus on discussions of the protection of IP rights such as Expo symbols and exhibits; Conferences on protection of IP rights of the Shanghai World Expo have been held to detail latest developments in the city’s protection of IP of the Expo; 16 industry associations and enterprises had been guided to jointly announce the Petition of Self-Discipline in Protection of World Expo Symbols, and to play their active roles in participation in and protection of IP at the Expo.

During the IP Protection Publicity Week in 2009, publicity campaigns, themed “Protect IP and Welcome a Wonderful Expo”, had reached the climax in promoting the Expo and IP. Video advertisements promoting IP with the Expo mascot Haibao as the mascot have been broadcast repeatedly on the television screens; cultural programs themed “World Expo and IP” have been staged at the opening ceremony of the Publicity Week and on the Century Square of Nanjing Road; “I Act to Welcome World Expo and Protect IP” knowledge contests have been held at Fudan University, Jiaotong University and seven other universities; and “Publicity Brochures for Protection of Expo IP” have been handed out in communities and schools. The Shanghai Bureau of Justice organized “Legal Seminars on Expo-related IP”; Pudong New Area organized corporate executives and community volunteers to participate in lectures on the protection of Expo IP; Zhabei District, Fengxian District, and Nanhui District organized high and primary school students, administrative units and enterprises to hold knowledge contests on IP law of the World Expo; Huangpu District organized business sectors to sign undertakings of “Welcome the World Expo and Strengthen IP Protection” in related activities.

Recently, the General Office of Shanghai Intellectual Property Joint Conference, the Publicity Department of Shanghai Municipal Party Committee, and the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, jointly published non-commercial advertisements to show respect for IP of the Expo on the History and Construction of the Party; at the same time, they have created non-commercial advertisements to be broadcast on Oriental Pearl Mobile TV and other media.

There are some difficulties and problems in nurturing the climate for Expo IP protection. There are mainly two aspects as follows:

Although Shanghai has done some work on Expo IP protection, there are still gaps: mainly the insufficient frequency of publicity. The current publicity activities have focused primarily on the Publicity Week and the frequency of publicity has been insufficient at other times; there is no regular mechanism for publicity. In this regard, the General Office of Shanghai Intellectual Property Joint Conference will work with relevant departments of Shanghai to tap resources available and strengthen publicity through networks, televisions, newspapers and other media, and organize cultural tours in connection with the Expo and IP with a view to enhancing efforts, breadth and depth of publicity campaigns.

Compared with the Olympic Games, the Shanghai World Expo will last longer and attract more visitors. A large number of foreign visitors will come to Shanghai and get an understanding of China through the window of Shanghai. Therefore, the current situations of IP protection in the city will have a direct impact on the country’s image and investment environment. Judging from the current situations, there are cases of IP infringement in some isolated areas. Therefore, Shanghai will further strengthen coordination between administrative law enforcement departments, and coordination between administrative law enforcement departments and justice departments, improve efficiency of IP enforcement, further increase penalties for various infringements of IP rights, and make every effort to do a good job in Expo IP protection with the view of ensuring a successful, memorable and exciting Expo.