Category Archives: Copyright

National Copyright Administration of People’s Republic of China is Ready to Make New Standards for Authors’ Remuneration

According to the China Culture Daily, it is reported that the person in charge of the administration department of the National Copyright Administration of People’s Republic of China ( “ National Copyright Administration”)recently states that they are positively preparing for the revise of new standards for authors’ remuneration, and investigation and survey will be carried in the near future among relevant authors, users of works and industry associations to ask for various advices and adapt standards for authors’ remuneration timely, for the purpose of better protecting the rights and interests of the authors, further encouraging the authors’ creation enthusiasm as well as taking account of the balance between the interests of the copyright owners and users.

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Common Problems Concerning the Notarization of Internet Evidences in China

Recently, Judge Gao Fei, from Dongcheng District People’s Court in Beijing, has published an article on the China Press and Publishing Journal, discussing the relevant problems of the electronic evidences of network copyright in China. The article analyzes the four main problems in the evidence preservation of network copyright infringement disputes due to the evidence being intangible and easy to be modified, and it also gives the solution. Bridge IP Law Commentary today will introduce you our interpretation on the article.

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Could Ungranted Movie’ s Copyright be Protected in China？

—Discussion on the Protection over the Prohibited Works by China Laws

Although China is among the few countries attempting to control the ideology, the rule of law is progressing in this country. Currently, the previously unprotected works, like the pornography or ungranted published works, all could be protected by the Copyright Law.

In recent, Shanghai Pudong People’s Court judged an infringement case of the cyber disseminated movie, and in the case the legal owner of the movie, which however has no administrative license for public show, was protected by the judgment and the owner’s claim of compensation was also supported.

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Could Tweets be Protected by Copyright Law in China?

Some net friends ask lawyers of Bridge IP Law Commentary on the http://www.zhihu.com/ (the Quora in China) that whether the original contents in the microblog could be protected by Copyright Law, and if can, how they are protected. Our replies are as follows:

1. The tweets could be the works as specified in the Copyright Law when they are original, despite they could only contain 140 characters. However, when the tweets only have a single word “Ah!” or the normal phrase like “It’s a fine day today”, then such microblogs could not be the legal works and could not be protected by Copyright Law.

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Analysis on the Legal Nature of Registration Code Cracking Software in China

The cyber age is a big challenge to the company like Microsoft, Adobe and Autodesk whose income mainly comes from the stand-alone software, for any netizen could get access to the copyrighted software easily through internet.

To prevent the easy software copy and pirating, the company tends to use the registration code or serial number for the software activation, or to adopt the DRM (digital right management) technology. However, a new problem is probably arousing after the old is settled, the solution of cracking is developed for such registration codes. Bridge IP Law Commentary today will analyze the legal responsibility for such cracking,

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Is It Difficult to Combat Knockoff Games in China?

—comment on the game software infringement by China laws

Highlight: To introduce you the most common infringement against the online game and the methods by which the right owner could stop the infringement or to gain the profit by licensing the infringer.

As news reports, Shengtiantang, a China game company is complained and demanded to withdraw by Blizzard for the company’s developed game World of Starcraft on iOS platform, meanwhile, Apple has also noticed Shengtiantang of the no infringement evidence.

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Analysis on the Legal Liability of Kaspersky for Customer Fraud

In recent, it has aroused public concern that the well-known security software firm, Kaspersky, was reported by CCTV, the Chinese state television, that its sales agents are likely to be fraudulent to the customers.

“Weekly Quality Report”, a program on CCTV, reports that some agents of Kaspersky trick customers to buy security software of Kaspersky by using ads which kept displaying a false virus warning. When the computer users are normally surfing the Internet, a pop-up ad appears to warn them that many serious threats such as viruses and Trojan horses are found in this computer and the computer system will be seriously damaged if the loopholes fail to be repaired in time. Because of worry about such viruses, many computer users spend RMB 20 buying the security software. In fact, such warning is just a trick to induce computer users to buy the security software. Ironically, when the customers visit the same web again after purchasing the recommended security software the virus warning still appears.

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Could the Copyright Safe Replace the System of Copyright Registration?

—Comparison between Copyright safe and copyright registration system

Highlight: Bridge IP Law Commentary today will introduce you the newly adopted system of the Copyright Safe, and also we will analyze the difference between the new system and the copyright registration system.

Recently, the Beijing International Copyright Trade Center released the country’s first “copyright safe” (the Safe) for the soonest electronic notarization by internet on works. Meanwhile, the Asia’s largest music database of the Center is also established and put into operation.

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Legal Commentary on the case of Founder VS P&G and Chinese Character, II

—Analysis on the law Nature of the Works of Word Stock

Today’s essay follows “Legal Commentary on the case of Founder VS P&G and Chinese Character, I”

(2) The Founder Word Stock is the composite works

The Stock here refers to the Founder Word Stock composing all the individual words in it rather than the stock software. The new works come from the selection or arrangement of the existing works is called the composite works. In our opinion, it’s necessary for Founder to apply the copyright registration for the whole Stock since only focusing on the determination of the copyrighted works over the Stock Software or the individual words is not enough. And such registration could benefit the protection over the Stock against any other infringement, such as to print a book or magazine in the script in the Stock with no license.

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Legal Commentary on the copyright infringement case of Founder Electronics VS P&G, I

—Analysis on the law Nature of the Works of Chinese Character Word Stock

Highlight: Today and tomorrow, Bridge IP Law Commentary will introduce and analyze you the case of script copyright conflict between Founder and P&G, and also the system of word stock works behind the case. And the following is the first half—the introduction on the case and the part analysis on the nature of the works of word stock.

On the morning of 5th July, 2011, the appeal of the Founder Electronics (HKEX:0418, 0618) was rejected by the No.1 Intermediate People’s Court of Beijing in its case of the script copyright conflict against P&G (NYSE: PG), and the decision of the first hearing was supported. The final judgment maintains an ambiguous attitude towards the determination of “飘柔”, the localized name of the Rejoice brand of P&G , to be a fine art works, neither to support it or opposite it.

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The Legal Protection over Open Source Software in China

Highlight: Although the OSS is the legal works protected by Copyright Law in China, there has promulgated few legal regulations on it. In this essay, you could know the method to protect the OSS by the current laws and regulations.

It has shown up an increasing trend to open the source code in the intellectual property practices of the world software industry, which is remarked in China by Microsoft’s decision to open part of its operating system code to China government. The protection over open source software is still a legal practices field with little specified regulations in China. However, on the other hand, most important software of China’s own intellectual property is developed on the opened source code and subject to the restriction of the OSS License. Bridge IP Commentary will introduce you the protection over the OSS under current legal environment in China and its legal status.

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The Copyright Dilemma of the Online Literature Industry in China

   

Highlights: The online literature in China is jeopardized by piracy. And for the safe harbor rules and massive uploading by netizens, such long-standing could not be effectively combated. Bridge IP Commentary will make analysis on such phenomenon.

In 2010, Shanda Literature (“Shanda”) sued Baidu over pirated literature works on mobiles net and its refusal to delete such works upon the complaint from Shanda. To Shanda’s claim, Baidu holds that it has removed the infringed part while others are examined of no infringement, and it shall take no liability hereby. Baidu was sentenced to take the liability in first instance, and then appealed but withdrew the suit at the end. Thus Baidu shall compensate Shanda RMB 500,000 yuan by the effective decision of the hearing. In this essay, Bridge will analyze the case and legal issues concerning the development of the original literature on the internet in China.

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Should Apple Bear Liability for Infringing Contents in App Store?

Highlights:Two software developers was sentenced to bear the compensation liability recently in Beijing for the infringing gadgets in Apple App Store. Bridge IP Commentary will introduce you the liabilities Apple may take in such case.

Recently, a case concerning the alleged video infringement in App Store is sentenced by a local Court in Beijing, in which the LeTV Information and Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (the “LeTV”, SZSE: 300104) found a TV series with the right to network dissemination of information reserved by it played on a software available from the App Store and then filed a suit against the two companies developing and operating the software. The first instance’s decision supported the claim of LeTV with the sentence of the compensation of RMB 40,000.

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