Tag Archives: copyright protection

Does Unauthorized Use of Screenshots in Game Guide Constitute Infringement?

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(By You Yunting) A game guide, also known as game strategy guide, is an essential reference for players. Generally, a game guide may quote pictures and screens from the game itself. But if without authorization, it triggers questions whether this quotation causes copyright infringement. In the following, a similar case will be introduced.

Introduction to the Case:

Plaintiff: Shanghai Aurogon Information and Technology Co., Ltd (the “Aurogon”)

1st Defendant: China Zhongdian Media Co., Ltd (the “ZD Media”)

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What is the Procedure When It Comes to the Registration of Imported Software in China?

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(By Wang Ting and You Yunting) Today we will discuss the legal restrictions and application procedures in regard to the introduction of foreign software into China.

  1. Copyright Protection of Imported Software

The Protection of Computer Software Regulations dividends the protection of imported foreign software into two types:

  • Software first distributed within the territory of China shall have copyright;
  • Software concluded with China by the countries to which the creators belong or in which the creators reside habitually or under the international conventions to which China is a member state shall enjoy its copyright.

China has concluded the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works with more than a hundred countries in the world. Taking that into consideration, under most circumstances if the requirements above can be met, the creator of the introduced software can cite the convention to gain copyright protection which is equal to Chinese citizens.

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Could Jewelry Design be Protected by the China’s Copyright Law?

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(By Luo Yanjie) It is common in China that a jewelry of the same design would be manufactured and sold by different jewelry shops in the industry of China’s jewelry. With regard to the initial source of the jewelry design, a lot jewelry companies and even consumers are not concerned whoever firstly designs the jewelry. In reality, a well-designed jewelry that took designers a great intelligence shall be protected by the Copyright Law. In today’s post, we will introduce a case where a jewelry design is succeed to be protected by the Copyright Law, sharing with readers.

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How Many Ways would be Available to Protect Online Copyright?

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 (By You Yunting) Within the World Intellectual Property Day approaching, Zhihu.com invited me to answer some questions about the popularization of intellectual property rights with the second topic below regarding what channels of online copyright enforcement would be available in China.

Yesterday, we discussed what are the difficulties in the online copyright enforcement in China. With different types of infringement, today I will discuss how to protect online copyright. Actually, there are three channels consisting of online criticism, complaints and litigation.

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What are the Difficulties in the Online Copyright Enforcement in China?

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(By You Yunting) Within the World Intellectual Property Day approaching, Zhihu.com invited me to answer some questions about the popularization of intellectual property rights with the first one below regarding what the difficulties are in the online copyright enforcement in China.

The Copyright Law aims to protect many types of works, including cinematographic works, television, written works, works of fine arts and graphic works. However, there are different kinds of infringement. When referring to whether relates to Internet, it can distinguish into online infringement and offline infringement. When referring to the infringement methods, it may include unauthorized reproduction and personate plagiarism. When talking about infringing any specific rights, it may discuss the right of modification, the right of integrity and so on. Now that I think about it, I’d like to narrow it down to a topic regarding what difficulties are in the online copyright enforcement China.

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Questions and Solutions to Enforcement of Rights Protection by Overseas Software Enterprise in China

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(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract:In the litigation of software infringement, the most fundamental evidence is that which is used to prove that the infringed software used by the defendant is plaintiff’s. It is urgent that China strengthens its punishment of infringement so as to protect commercial order and stability.

Rhino Software Inc. (hereinafter the “RhinoSoft”) developed “Serv-U”, a widely adopted FTP server software. In recent years, RhinoSoft have been trying to enforce its rights against the unauthorized use of Serv-U in China. Our previous post Analysis on the Assumption of Liability in the Serv-U Infringement Lawsuit in China has already introduced some of our analysis on this issue. In today’s post, we will be doing a complete analysis of the problems and potential solutions of RhinoSoft’s enforcement of rights in the proceeding litigation from a practical perspective.

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Why Guangzhou Intermediate People’s Court Decided the Contractual Terms not Protect by the Copyright Law?

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(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: The Implementing Regulations of the Copyright law stipulates “works” under the protection of the Copyright Law shall be under originality. “Originality” can be divided into two parts: independent creation and the minimum intellectual creation.

An enterprise filed a suit to the courts, alleging the defendant copied its contractual terms. One would wonder whether the terms of a contract shall be protected by the Copyright Law. The Guangzhou Intermediate People’s Court provided an answer that the terms in a contract may not be protected by the Copyright Law owing to the expression limitation of a contract. Here are the introduction to this case and our opinions for the following.

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Why NEXON’s BNB Failed to Accuse Tencent’s “QQ堂” of Copyright Infringement?

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(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract:  The Copyright Law protects “expression” rather than “thought”. For the purposes of the Copyright Law, “works” refer to original intellectual creations in the literary, artistic and scientific domain, insofar as they are capable of being reproduced in a specific tangible form. Works without originality are not protected by these laws.

In recent years, there has been a serious plagiarism problem in the field of online games. Considering that online games act as computer software, laws protect its “code” other than game mode and method. The case in today’s post will elucidate this principle.

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How to Determine the Competent Jurisdiction for Online Infringement?

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(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: The Supreme People’s Court’s decision concerning jurisdiction in terms of determining the domicile of a transit server seems rather amiss against the principle of the doctrine of the plaintiff accommodating the defendant. The place where a plaintiff discovers infringing content should be the final choice of jurisdiction in cases involving network and online infringement. Unfortunately, laws and judicial interpretations in our country do not currently make a distinction between the right of goodwill and a legal person’s right of reputation.

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Why China Court Believe Google Books’ Scanning of Books Constitute Copyright Infringement?

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(By Luo Yanjie)Abstract: The fair use system in China adopts a legislative model of “exhaustive listing”, and many judicial breakthroughs in recent cases appear to be more in conformity with principles of fairness and impartiality. Copyright Infringement against the right of reproduction shall be prohibited. However, an interesting question is whether the infringing party assumes liability for damages in cases where the copyright owner doesn’t actually suffer any losses.

Google Books has triggered global protest and litigation from publishers worldwide. The following is an introduction to a case that developed in China.

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Can a database be Protected by the Copyright Law in China?

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Abstract: in order to be considered a compilation, such works should typically possess a number of characteristics, such as the selection or arrangement of the data, and the originality in the presentation of said data. In other words, compilations generally require a modicum of originality and ingenuity present in order to receive some form of protection as an original work.

(By Luo Yanjie) Generally, the copyright of a database protects the arrangement of the database rather than to the contents. The case in today’s post demonstrates this point, and at the same time, provides a bit of good for thought. The following is the introduction to the case.

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Is School Teaching a Method of Publicizing Work in China?

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(By Luo Yanjie) According to the Copyright Law, the copyright holder has more than ten exclusive rights. The copyright holder is often unclear about the differences between the exclusive rights and may have a very vague understanding of the fair use system, a system which can cut against the copyright. Although the case introduced in this essay is fundamentally not a rights protection case, the judgement clarifies the methods used for publication and expands the scope of the fair use copyright exception. The following is a summary and analysis of the case:

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China’s Courts Found Non-Infringement for Unauthorized Remake of Song

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(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: The scope of the statutory license includes the manufacturing of the audio recording, and also includes the distribution of the work afterwards. Judging from the latest case, the written statement of the right holder must explicitly exclude the application of statutory license, and cannot simply exclude it by claiming “chasing any infringement.”

The statutory license provided in the Copyright Law is to prevent a monopoly in the music market, but the law also regulates that the right holder has the right to exclude that license. ” However as to what kind statement shall be made within such exclusion statement, we have found no such regulation in law. According to the case described in this essay, the recording industry tends to use the term “copyright reserved, and infringement chased”, which in fact is not within the scope of the license due to the followings:

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Is School Teaching a Method of Publicizing Work in China?

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(By Luo Yanjie) According to the Copyright Law, the copyright holder has more than ten exclusive rights. Because of the many kinds of works and complexity of society’s use of the work, the copyright holder is often unclear about the differences between the exclusive rights and may have a very vague understanding of the fair use system, a system which can cut against the copyright. Although the case introduced in this essay is fundamentally not a rights protection case, the judgment clarifies the methods used for publication and expands the scope of the fair use copyright exception. The following is a summary and analysis of the case:

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Is a Notarization Made under False Pretenses for the Purpose of Evidence Collecting Valid in China?

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(By  Luo Yanjie) In a civil lawsuit, the collecting of evidence for the purpose of notarization is quite common. However, during the process of collecting evidence that concerns the selling of infringing goods, the rights holders or their attorneys typically utilize a system of collection in which they set up a “customer” to purchase the infringing product as evidence of infringement. So the question is, should evidence collected in this manner be considered legally effective for the purposes of a lawsuit for infringement or unfair trade practice? For our understanding on the issue, and our experience in this decidedly complicated process, we would like to share with our readers today’s post concerning our opinions on the issue:

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