VZCZCXRO8703
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #2009 1970622
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 160622Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5206
RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 2686
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 1316
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC

UNCLAS BEIJING 002009 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
State Pass USTR China office - AWinter; IPR Office - RBae 
Commerce for MAC 
State Pass USPTO 
 
E.O. 12958 N/A 
TAGS: ETRD KIPR ECON PGOV CH
SUBJECT: STATE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OFFICE MINISTER DISCUSSES CHINA 
IPR ISSUES 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary.  The State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) 
will be playing a broader role in all matters relating to IPR in the 
upcoming Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT) according to 
SIPO's Commissioner.  The Ministry of Commerce will still coordinate 
China's overall JCCT participation.  The Commissioner stated China's 
recently developed a National IPR Strategy which will serve as a 
pillar of continued economic growth.  Provisions for compulsory 
licensing in China's newly amended patent law follow international 
convention and should not be cause for concern.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) SIPO will be playing a more extensive role in all issues 
relating to IPR during the upcoming JCCT, SIPO Commissioner Tian 
LiPu told Deputy USTR Demetrios Marantis during a July 14 meeting. 
Tian explained that Vice Premier Wu Yi used to coordinate the eight 
different agencies or ministries responsible for IPR issues in the 
JCCT but, currently, no State Council representative fills that 
role.  As a result, SIPO will coordinate.  MOFCOM will still be 
responsible for overall JCCT coordination, he emphasized.  Tian 
further explained China had recently launched an inter-ministry IPR 
commission which he will lead that consists of 28 different agencies 
or ministries. 
 
¶3. (SBU) SIPO's primary function is patent examination, he 
continued.  By the end of 2009, his Ministry will have over 9,000 
employees.  Internationally, "only the U.S. Patent and Trade Office 
is bigger," Tian joked. 
 
China's National IPR Strategy 
------------------------------ 
¶4. (SBU) The Chinese government in 2008 unveiled its National IPR 
Strategy which will serve as one of the pillars to China's continued 
economic growth, Tian boasted.  Consisting of both a five-year plan 
and explicit goals to achieve by 2020, Tian said the plan does not 
rely solely on governmental regulation.  Rather, it seeks to involve 
industry and Chinese consumers in tamping down on IPR violations. 
Asked about the five-year plan, Tian said China would seek to 
improve IPR legislation, bolster enforcement, and raise the public's 
awareness on the importance of IPR protection.  Regarding public 
awareness, Tian cited a recent study by Tsinghua University in which 
only 0.7% of Chinese consumers polled were able to define the word 
"copyright."  "We've got a lot of work to do," Tian laughed. 
 
The Amended Patent Law 
----------------------- 
¶5. (SBU) Tian said the State Council had recently passed a newly 
revised patent law that will come into effect October 1.  According 
to Tian, the public, interested parties and even foreign governments 
and industry were invited to comment on the proposed revisions 
during the public comment period.  "We were fully transparent," he 
said.  Currently, his Ministry is working on the implementing 
regulations for the revised law which he also hopes the State 
Council will promulgate by October 1. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Asked about the provision for compulsory licensing of 
patents within the new law, Tian explained the provision follows 
international standards as outlined in the Paris Convention and uses 
the same legal terms as patent laws in the U.S. or E.U. Compulsory 
licensing provisions have been contained in China's patent law 
dating back to 1985 but have never been invoked.  Despite the 
revisions to the law, the guidelines published in 2006 with regards 
to compulsory licensing will remain the same, he said.  Industry has 
no need to worry about those provisions, Tian opined. 
 
Copyright Law Amendments - Maybe 2010? 
-------------------------------------- 
¶7. (SBU) Regarding timing for revision of the copyright law, Tian 
stated it is in the "pre-legislation" stage.  The relevant parties 
are in the process of collecting information and studying the best 
way to revise the law.  In order to get it amended, however, it 
needs to be on the State Counsel Legislative Affairs Office 
calendar, he explained.  Tian predicted this would happen in 2010. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Asked about whether SIPO would have a role in the State 
Administration of Industry and Commerce (SAIC) abuse of dominance 
investigations involving possible anti-competitive effects of 
parties' IPR use, Tian stated IPR cases are not covered by China's 
new Anti-Monopoly Law as IPR is itself a kind of monopoly.  SIPO 
would have jurisdiction over any such cases. 
 
¶9. (U) Ambassador Marantis has cleared this cable.