Inner Mongolia
First expert panel
With 100 members, the autonomous region's first expert panel on intellectual property was founded in Hohhot last week.
Its experts and specialists come from more than 10 fields including law, metallurgy, mechanics, energy, agriculture and digital information.
The panel will offer consultancy for policymaking, assessing IP-related projects, technology transactions and resolving IP disputes, organizers said.
They will also participate in legal aid and IP education and training services.
Northnews.cn
Jiangsu
Workshop on PCT
More than 100 representatives from local companies, intermediary agencies and intellectual property administrations participated in a recent workshop in Suzhou on the international Patent Cooperation Treaty.
Experts and officials from the World Intellectual Property Organization and the State Intellectual Property Office outlined a wide range of PCT issues, including the latest developments in China, strategic use for companies and application procedures with SIPO.
The meeting was designed to give companies a better understanding of the PCT system so they can better use it to increase their international patents, organizers said.
Sipo.gov.cn
Beijing
Electronics IP office
An IP office for the Beijing Electronics Chamber of Commerce was recently founded to offer a range of services to member companies such as streamlined procedures for infringement complaints, dispute resolution and research.
A joint effort by the chamber and the Beijing Service Center for IP Protection, it is the fourth partnership between the center and various industries in the city.
Sipo.gov.cn
Kobe's name dispute
After basketball legend Michael Jordan filed a trademark infringement suit over use of his name in China, NBA star Kobe Bryan is now in a similar dispute.
Fujian resident Hong Qinping registered "KB-Kobe" as well as the Chinese translation of Kobe as a trademark for use on handbags, suitcases and wallets - which drew the attention of Bryant's powerful sponsor Nike.
Nike then protested the registration with the trademark review board at the State Administration of Industry and Commerce.
Yet the board decided Nike's evidence failed to prove Byrant's reputation extends beyond the basketball court to other business domains. It concluded that Hong's trademark does not violate Nike's rights.
In response, Nike recently brought legal action against the review board in Beijing No 1 Intermediate People's Court. The case has yet to go to trial.
Nnipso.cn
Shanghai
Cartier files complaints
French jeweler and watchmaker Cartier SA has filed two trademark infringement complaints in Pudong district court against Shanghai Shiduoyi E-commerce Co, operator of online shopping site Yihaodian.com, and two Beijing firms that allegedly sold fake Cartier products on the portal.
The French company's attorneys said the famed brand has been granted status as a well-known trademark in China many times.
The products on sale at Yihaodian were called "Cartier's classic style" and the "Cartier collection" but the French firm said it did not make the items.
The court has not yet set a date to hear the cases.
Xinmin Evening News
Jiangxi
Prison for breach of trust
The former deputy general manager of Jiangxi Huadian Electrical Power Co Ltd was recently sentenced to five years in prison and fined 100,000 yuan ($15,696) by a court in the city of Xinyu for breach of a confidentiality agreement.
The defendant surnamed Chen was in charge of production of Huadian's power generators and signed a confidentiality agreement pledging to not reveal the company's technical secrets while he was employed and after he resigned.
Yet after he quit his job at Huadian and joined Colossus Group in Liaoning province in 2008, he was in charge of production and sale of the same type of power generators, competing with his ex-employer at lower prices.
The court found that he used the Jiangxi company's know-how to apply for a patent on the technology and caused more than 7 million yuan in damage to Huadian.
Gmw.cn
(China Daily 07/18/2012 page17)
