This Day, That Year: April 1

Editor's note: This year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of New China.

As its doors open to increased international trade, China has been placing more importance on intellectual property rights. The country joined the World Intellectual Property Organization, or Madrid system, in 1980. In 1994, it joined the Patent Cooperation Treaty.

On April 1, 1985, the country's Patent Law took effect, and people in Beijing lined up in the capital's patent office to apply, as seen in an item in China Daily on April 2, 1985.

China has amended its Patent Law three times - in 1992, 2000 and 2009.

Patents are trending sharply upward, with a rapid transition to inventions. China has been the world leader in patent applications for seven consecutive years, according to the State Intellectual Property Office. As of the end of last year, the number of patents for inventions in the country had topped 1.6 million, up 18.1 percent over the previous year.

According to the government, the import and export volume of intellectual property royalties exceeded $35 billion last year.

The number of international filings from China under the Patent Cooperation Treaty reached 55,000 last year, an increase of 9 percent year-on-year, and the number of international trademark applications filed via the Madrid system surpassed 6,000, an increase of more than 25 percent over the previous year.

The nation's growing participation in global innovation has been marked by surging international collaboration with a wide variety of partners. China has extended its cooperation with countries including Cambodia and Laos, and membership in the Patent Prosecution Highway pilot program has risen to 28.

China established a comprehensive strategic partnership with the European Patent Office and signed 52 bilateral and multilateral agreements in 2017.

To strengthen the protection of intellectual property rights, authorities are restructuring the IP office under the State institutional reform plan of the State Council, China's Cabinet, which was released last year.