- Beijing

SIPO seeks partnership with UK

The State Intellectual Property Office Commissioner Shen Changyu last week met with Sebastian Wood, the UK ambassador to China. Shen said developing the Sino-UK relationship will ensure fruitful partnerships in the IP field. He said the two countries will cooperate by exchanging patent examiners as well as through participation in the Patent Prosecution Highway project and a number of official summits. By the end of last year, UK companies had filed 24,565 patent applications in China, with more than 10,000 granted.

Gov.cn

Holders of music rights paid

The Music Copyright Society of China recently announced that it had total licensing revenue of 112 million yuan ($18.5 million) last year, 82 percent of which had been redistributed to copyright owners. The revenue came from many businesses, including the press, broadcasting, hotels, retail sales and the Internet. Performance licensing took the largest share in the revenue, contributing more than 50 million yuan. The total revenue was 42.5 million yuan in 2009.

huaxia.com

- Heilongjiang

Patent apps surge for local schools

Universities in the province applied for 4,246 patents in 2013, with the annual increase of 46 percent. They now hold 4,758 valid invention patents, accounting for more than half of the total number of invention patents in the province. The provincial government has been encouraging innovation at local universities and research institutions. Last year it invested 2.5 million yuan to help a number of universities establish their IP management systems.

Heilongjiang Daily

- Jilin

Fake P&G products seized

Industry and commerce enforcement officials in Siping city, with the help of inspectors from Procter & Gamble China Co, recently cracked down on two local stores selling counterfeited cosmetics and cleaning products. They seized a total of 40 boxes of faked shampoo, face cleansers and makeup infringing a number of brands under P&G, such as Pantene, VS and Rejoice, as well as other famous brands like Proya and Lancome.

CHINAJILIN.COM.CN

- Chongqing

IP trading center celebrates first yr

The city's online intellectual property rights trading center has successfully finished its one-year trial run. Developed primarily by the Chongqing Academy of Science & Technology, the IP trading portal facilitated 58 patent deals worth a total of more than 60 million yuan. The hub provides services including patent exhibition and evaluation for patent holders in the city. It also allows buyers to bid for the patents they are interested in.

CHONGQING DAILY

- Jiangsu

Inventions emerging from tech zone

Last year, companies in the Zhenjiang economic development zone filed more than 1,100 invention patent applications, an increase of 43 percent annually. Some 110 of them were authorized, making the zone lead the city in the number of authorized invention patents for two consecutive years. The zone also had an invention patent ownership rate of up to 15.5 per 10,000 people by the end of last year, ranking second in the city.

JSCHINA.COM.CN

- Qinghai

Plan to build brands unveiled

The Qinghai industry and commerce administration plans to promote the development of homegrown brands this year and raise the social awareness about the importance of trademarks. The administration will launch a large campaign with themes of using trademark to enhance value and promoting brand-driven development around this year's World IP Day in April. Also, more related seminars, training programs and knowledge contests will be held to create a better brand-building environment.

QHNEWS.COM

- Gansu

Innovation on rise in province

The provincial IP administration last week announced that it received 10,976 patent applications last year, for the first time surpassing 10,000. The number increased 32.9 percent compared with the previous year, and ranked the 24th nationwide, moving one place up from 2012. This year, the authority will focus on the use of IP. It will help local small companies commercialize their patents.

Science and Technology Daily

(China Daily 02/19/2014 page17)