IP scene

Inner Mongolia

Court ruling upholds restaurant name

The Hohhot Intermediate People's Court recently made a ruling in a trademark case, which involved long-standing catering business Maixiangcun in Hohhot, capital of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region. The identically-named restaurant founded in 1933 has long used the Chinese mark Maixiangcun, which literally means wheat fragrance village, extensively in its business, without the assent by the trademark owner Jia Guolong, who also founded Xibei Restaurant, a fast food chain specializing in the cuisines of Northwest China, in 1988. The court ruled that Maixiangcun restaurant can continue to use the trademark within its "existing scope" due to its prior use, but ordered it to add another mark to distinguish itself from Xibei.

People's Court Daily

Beijing

Iwncomm prevails in patent lawsuit

The Beijing High People's Court upheld the Beijing Intellectual Property Court's ruling in favor of Iwncomm, a network security access provider and developer based in Xi'an, Shaanxi province in a patent dispute with Sony Mobile Communications (China). Iwncomm initiated the legal procedures against Sony with the IP court in 2015, claiming the latter infringed on one of its standard essential patents, and prevailed in the case in March 2017. SEP refers to the patents that are required to be used to conform to the industry technical standards. Sony later lodged an appeal with the high court which was dismissed in late March.

China Intellectual Property News

Guangdong

Satellite navigation alliance formed

An intellectual property alliance for the satellite navigation industry in Guangdong province was established on Tuesday at the 2018 China Information Technology Expo in Shenzhen. Founding members of the alliance include government agencies, leading companies in the industry and IP service providers. The alliance will integrate resources and help companies along the industrial chain to cooperate and improve their IP capacities.

News.cnstock.com

Zhejiang

IT, new energy service center approved

The Zhejiang Service Center for Intellectual Property Protection was recently approved by the State Intellectual Property Office to become the 16th such center nationwide. Focusing on next-generation information technology and new energy industries, it is designed to provide quick channels for patent examination, rights recognition and protection. Local officials said the center will also help to improve local companies' innovation ability and optimize IP environment.

Zjol.com.cn

Henan

Trademark applications to speed up

The Zhengzhou trademark examination cooperation center, the fifth of its kind in China, was recently approved. The center covers more than 10,000 square meters and is expected to receive 1.5 million trademark applications a year. When it is completed, companies based in Henan and six nearby provinces can go to the new center instead of Beijing to apply for trademarks, and the examination period will be reduced from nine months to six months.

Dahe Daily

Hebei

Brand festival to be held in Tangshan

The 2018 China Trademark Festival is to be held in Tangshan from Aug 31 to Sept 3, with the theme of creation, protection and utilization, according to a recent news conference of the China Trademark Association, a co-organizer of the event. As the largest and most influential annual international event for trademarks and brands in the nation, the festival will include 18 forums, an exposition, a trademark design contest and other related activities.

China Industry & Commerce News

Plant auction nets $4.3 million

More than 27 million yuan ($4.3 million) worth of deals were made at the third Auction on New Cultivars and Technology of Ornamental Plants in China, which was held in Baoding on March 31. A total of 166 items, representing 88 new plant varieties and new technologies from 43 companies and institutions, were involved in the auction, and 51 items were dealt.

China Green Times

(China Daily 04/12/2018 page17)