1. Heilongjiang
NE China seize 3.6m yuan counterfeits
Suifenhe Customs in Northeast China had recently seized more than 6,000 copycat HP toner cartridges and 70 fabricated SKF bearings.
The counterfeited products are estimated to be valued at 3.6 million yuan ($571,320). This signifies the largest case of intellectual property piracy that local customs officials have ever encountered.
The incident occurred on Dec 28, 2011. The alleged products of toner cartridges and bearings were initially bound for Grodekovo, Russia.
HLJNEWS.CN
2. Beijing
Courts rule in record number of piracy
The Beijing courts made judgments in 12,269 intellectual property cases last year to top the nation, Chi Qiang, head of the Beijing Higher People's Court, announced in a report addressed to the municipal People's Congress.
The number increased 16.3 percent compared with 2010, and accounted for 22.3 percent of the countrywide total, according to Chi.
The Beijing Higher People's Court had established policies over handling cases that involve Internet copyrights and franchised business operations to improve intellectual property protections, Chi added.
LEGALDAILY.COM.CN
3. Henan
An ink company wins valued praise
A new printing ink developed by a privately owned company based in Xinxiang city won praise from experts at an intellectual property press conference, according to the China Press and Publishing Journal.
Due to 20 years of research, the patented product is free of a petroleum-based organic solvent, which is a major ingredient for traditional printing ink but contains a highly explosive pollutant.
Since the ingredient is replaced by pure water, the new ink is safer, cheaper and more environmentally friendly.
CHINAXWCB.COM
4. Guangdong
Guangzhou to host LED IPR summit
The first national summit on intellectual property of LED technologies has been scheduled for Feb 20 in Guangzhou.
The event explores methods to protect home-developed LED technologies and innovations.
The one-day summit is anticipated to attract 150 professionals. Officials from the Guangdong provincial intellectual property office, senior executives of international LED companies and attorneys at global law firms are all invited.
Speakers will share case studies of intellectual property matters in the sector from different perspectives.
PRNASIA.COM
5. Shanghai
A man goes to prison for fake maps
A man surnamed Lu was sentenced to three and a half years in prison and fined 20,000 yuan by the Huangpu district court in Shanghai for producing counterfeit city maps.
The 49-year old criminal, a Shanghai native, had illegally printed more than 72,000 maps since July 2011. Each copy cost less than 1 yuan to manufacture but it was priced at 6 yuan.
More than 44,000 copies of the fraudulent maps were sold in Shanghai and 28,000 copies had been seized at a printing press.
JFDAILY.COM
SAIC Motor to revive 'Shanghai' model
The car, "Shanghai," is expected to return to the domestic auto market, according Shanghai-based SAIC Motor.
Created in 1958, the vehicle was a household name in China before productions were suspended after the signing of a 1991 joint venture of Shanghai Volkswagen.
Over official and public concerns with domestic brands in recent years, the vehicle "Shanghai" is staging a comeback for the new Roewe series.
Adopting a dual brand strategy, the series of cars is anticipated to be launched at the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition this April.
SINA.COM
(China Daily 02/08/2012 page17)
