Transcript 幻灯片 1

IPR and China
– How companies can
best be protected
The Helpdesk Initiative
SMEs
• Protecting
Innovation
• Securing Global
Competitiveness
China
Assistance
• Opportunities
• Challenges
• Eg: EUCCC; VDMA
• Business Associations
• European Parliament
The Helpdesk Initiative
• European business is 99% SMEs, about 2/3 of
employment & about 57-58% of value added (a bit
like ratio of Chinese origin goods to all counterfeit
seizures….)
• Definition of SMEs isn't only 'micro-enterprises'
(under 10 people) but extends up to 250 employees,
so covers more of economy than you might think
• SMEs tend to assume that IPR is: costly, technical,
'too complicated' and 'not for me' leading them to do
even less than they could do otherwise
• SMEs have fewer resources so need help
Workshop Agenda
Why Do Greek Companies Need To Consider
IPR?
What Do You Need to Protect?
How Can Businesses Best be Protected:
- Before you start
- While doing business with China
Why Do Greek Companies
Need To Consider IPR?
Trade between Greece & China = US$3.5 billion
in 2008
Exports from Greece to China over US$150
million
As of November 2008, China is Greece’s 30th
export market & ranked 3rd for imports
Source: Mofcom
Why Do Greek Companies
Need To Consider IPR?
Examples of 2008 Imports to Greece from China:
• Mechanical and electrical
products - $955 mln
• Transportation equipment – $608
mln
• Furniture, toy, miscellaneous
products - $427 mln
• Textile and raw materials - $424
mln
• Base metal and products – $353
mln
• Shoes & boots, umbrella and
other light industry products $209 mln
• Plastics, rubber - $127 mln
• Pottery, glasses - $123 mln
• Leather products, boxes and bags
– $116 mln
• Chemical products - $84 mln
• Wood and wooden products - $55
mln
• Optics, clocks, medical devices $54 mln
• Cellulose pulp, paper - $51 mln
• Plants - $25 mln
• Artwork - $22 mln
Why Do Greek Companies
Need To Consider IPR?
•
To protect your products & ideas
•
To protect & harness your brands &
reputation
•
•
To justify research & development
costs
To make sure new rights belong to
you
•
To prevent other companies from
utilizing your inventions & designs
•
To keep your competitors at a
distance
• To create market space for future
development
• To create a strong defence in case
of conflicts / infringement
• To record unique technology &
designs for investors
• To create a platform for licensing& co-operation agreements;
• To create a qualified knowledge
base for decisions about
registering rights internationally.
What Do You Need
To Protect?
• Brand names
• Designs
• Inventions
• Software
• Technology
• Systems & procedures
• Artistic works
• Know how
• Literary works
• Trade secrets
• Domain names
How Can Businesses
Best Be Protected?
• How can you minimise the risks?
- treat it like your house, bank account, wallet…
• Issues before you start doing business with China
- know before you go
• While you are there –
- Dealing with 3rd parties
- Sourcing
- Manufacturing
- Licensing
- Trade fairs
How Can Businesses
Best Be Protected?
Issues before you start doing business with
China:
– Is it registered?
– What countries are covered?
– What about Chinese versions?
– Who are you dealing with?
– How do you know if they are reliable?
How Can Businesses
Best Be Protected?
• China is a “first-to-file” country when it comes to IPR
registrations.
- Key issue for many EU Businesses – case study
• China, Hong Kong and Taiwan use separate legal
systems, i.e. there is a need to file in both.
• For trademarks: register broadly in many classes,
Chinese versions of your TM should be registered
How Can Businesses
Best Be Protected?
While you are there:
– Contracts/NDAs/confidentiality – notarise
agreements
– Are they likely to develop your product – what
about IPR?
– Does your supplier/manufacturer have control of
brand labels/moulds/production
equipment/proprietary information?
– Assess risks – who else does supplier work for; is
there a conflict?
Case study:
Great idea – poorly executed…
How Can Businesses
Best Be Protected?
Business partners and IPR protection
• Consider how you want the relationship to work and what
controls you need to put in place to secure your rights
• Conditions should be put into a written agreement and
accurately translated and understood by all parties
• Take steps to verify that your potential business partner are
genuine and share the same goals as you
• If possible, consider keeping your most valuable IP a ‘trade
secret’, for example, the formula for Coca-cola.
How Can Businesses
Best Be Protected?
Business partners and IPR protection
• Consider what samples and promotional materials you
provide to potential partners
• Ensure that your property is protected after an agreement has
ended e.g. include the return of moulds within the written
agreement
• Clearly state what Intellectual Property Rights are owned by
whom in respect any items you supplied
• Use confidentiality, non-competition and non-disclosure
agreements
• Specifically state that your supplier may NOT use a subsupplier without your permission
Summary
• Register rights – if you don’t own it you can’t
protect it
• You need to be the first to file IPR in China
• Use good contracts
• Prevention better than cure
• Be proactive
Next – Ways to deal with
Infringement/Counterfeiting…