Zhengzhou (Henan) Intermediate People’s Court heard PEPSI’s trademark infringement and unfair competition allegation against Henan 百事 (pronounces Bai-shi, PEPSI in Chinese).
PEPSI claims the registration of 百事 as a trade name by the defendant constitutes unfair competition. The defendant’s substantial use of 百事 in its website, packaging and promotional materials also infringes PEPSI’s trademark right. PEPSI sought injunction and 500,000 yuan in damages.
The defendant argues it legally registered its trade name with Zhengzhou Administration for Industry and Commerce. The trademark on the packaging and bottle label of its beverage products is 甜在心. On some products, even when 百事甜在心 and 百事饮品 are used, the two words 百事 are used in smaller font to minimize presence. No trademark infringement or unfair competition is constituted. We will follow the developments of the case.
Source: China IP News
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: China, intellectual property, Microsoft, Piracy, software, Strongwell, Windows
Microsoft’s Windows Vista operating system at display in a shopping mall in Beijing. The US software giant won a lawsuit against a Beijing computer dealer which was accused of providing pirated software to its customers.
China’s Do-It-Yourself personal computer market has proven a chronic headache for Microsoft Corp, which is continually battling the use of pirated software.
But the US-based software giant won a skirmish this month, when a Beijing court ruled against a major custom PC dealer accused of pre-installing pirated Microsoft Windows and Office software.
On July 2, Beijing No 1 Intermediate People’s Court, in a preliminary ruling, sided with Microsoft against Beijing Strongwell Technology & Development Co, one of the larger custom PC dealers in Beijing.
The court said the Beijing company infringed on Microsoft’s Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), and ordered Strongwell to pay Microsoft 461,409 yuan in compensation.
The ruling follows a year-long effort by Microsoft to focus more on battling piracy among smaller customer PC dealers and individual consumers suspected of using pirated software.
During the past few years, Microsoft has persuaded major PC makers, large companies and government organizations in China to use legitimate software.
But the use of pirated software reportedly still is prevalent among individual Chinese consumers.
“The enforcement of IPR protection is vital to innovation,” Yu Weidong, Microsoft China’s senior director on IPR issues, said in a statement issued to China Business Weekly following the court’s ruling.
“We will continue to work with the government to promote the use of legitimate software in China,” Yu said.
Established in 1994, Strongwell is the largest custom PC dealer in Beijing, with eight Do-It-Yourself PC stores in the city.
Microsoft sued the company after purchasing 12 computers pre-loaded with pirated Microsoft software, according to Microsoft’s lawsuit. Microsoft sought 500,000 yuan in damages.
Strongwell’s response was that the pirated software was installed at the request of individuals hired by Microsoft, and that the company only sells computer accessories – not computers.
Strongwell has not reported whether the company will appeal the ruling.
Although Microsoft was successful in promoting the use of legitimate software by corporations and government agencies, piracy reportedly is widespread in Do-It-Yourself markets, according to industry observers.
China’s Do-It-Yourself dealers are scattered, but altogether accounted for nearly 25 percent of the country’s PC market last year, according to the research firm IDC.
In July 2008, Microsoft filed a complaint with the Chinese government against the author of a highly popular, pirated version of Microsoft Windows XP. The man was arrested in August.
In October 2008, the company initiated a controversial tracking campaign that came with a warning system.
Chinese users of pirated Windows XP software would receive constant reminders from Microsoft.
The system also resulted in desktop screens being “black screened”, prompting numerous complaints.
A computer dealer in Beijing said the high price of Microsoft’s software is a major reason some consumers turn to cheaper pirated versions.
“Many customers spend 3,000 yuan for a Do-It-Yourself computer, and they don’t want to spend much of the rest of their limited budget on something if there is a free alternative,” said the dealer, who asked that his name not be used.
The dealer said that although Microsoft recently reduced its product price in China, many Chinese consumers still couldn’t afford it.
By the end of 2008, Microsoft had reduced the price of its Windows and Office software products by as much as 60 percent in China.
The drop in price broke with the company’s long-standing policy to maintain prices at about the same level around the world.
This month, Microsoft reported that it would sell the basic version of its Windows 7 software for 399 yuan in China — the lowest price worldwide.
The company hopes that the price reductions, together with its measures against piracy, will encourage more Chinese customers to buy legitimate software.
According to the Business Software Alliance, an international commercial software and hardware industry anti-piracy group, the PC software piracy rate in China dropped two percentage points last year to 80 percent.
That’s still almost twice as high as the global average of 41 percent.
Yu Guofu, a lawyer with Beijing’s Sam & Partners law firm, said the Strongwell ruling would have a limited effect on software piracy.
“But the case is not expected to extinguish pirated software in this market,” Yu said.
“Dealers may encourage consumers to install the pirated software themselves, which is not strictly prohibited under current IPR laws in China,” Yu said.
Source: China Daily
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: China, copyright, counterfeit, Edouard Schmitt zur Hohe, intellectual property
China was recently named one of the world’s worst offenders in counterfeiting and copyright violations. But the country’s progress in protecting intellectual property (IP) rights has also been widely acknowledged.
The Silk Street Market in Beijing is popular with both locals and tourists. It is famous, or infamous, for its wide selection of fake branded goods, ranging from jeans and scarves to wallets and handbags.
Despite years of crackdown, counterfeit goods can still be bought, either openly or beneath the counter. When the market shut down 29 stalls earlier this year for selling counterfeit goods, vendors not only fought back, but also filed a countersuit.
An intellectual property rights expert said authorities could have taken tougher measures.
Edouard Schmitt zur Hohe, intellectual property expert, said: “In Shenzhen for example, there is an identical market Luohu and when Wu Yi (former Chinese politician) went down, she wasn’t happy with it and within 24 hours all counterfeits were gone. So if the Chinese government really wants to make a move, it will.”
It is estimated that piracy has cost American movie, music and software companies over US$2 billion a year in lost revenue.
Mr Schmitt zur Hohe said: “IP infringement is stealing, it is theft. Somebody spent time, money, investment to create an intellectual property, a movie. It is expensive to make a movie. The average wage in China is 2,000 RMB. An 80 RMB movie is not going to break the bank.”
Over the years, China has put in place comprehensive laws to protect intellectual property rights, including patents, trademarks and copyrights.
A newly-revised patents law, which will come into effect in October, will strengthen intellectual property protection for foreign investors, and encourage the import of advanced technologies.
This is a clear sign that Beijing realises that protecting intellectual property rights is an important step in promoting innovation and spurring economic growth.
Mr Schmitt zur Hohe said: “In the 19th century, America is a huge infringer of IP, but once they started on their own IP, they became much better – same with Japan and Taiwan. I think in China, once they get their own trademarks going, we will see much more protection of IP involved.”
Experts say longer prison sentences for violators and greater damages for copyright infringers may help in the fight against counterfeit and piracy. But what is also essential is a more rigorous and more consistent enforcement of existing laws and regulations.
Source: Channel News Asia
