News & Cases From China: July 2021.

To read News & Cases from China: August 2021, please click here.

 

国家知识产权局发布2021年上半年数据
 

2021年7月14日，国家知识产权局2021年第三季度例行新闻发布会在京举行，集中发布了专利、商标、地理标志和集成电路布图设计的半年统计数据。
 

整体而言，此次数据主要呈现3个特点：
 

1）知识产权审查能力持续提升。截至6月底，发明专利平均审查周期已压减至 19.4个月，高价值专利审查周期压减至13.4个月，商标注册平均审查周期稳定在4个月以内；

2）拥有发明专利企业数量稳定增加。截至6月底，拥有有效发明专利的企业27.0万家，较上年底增加2.4万家。其中高新技术企业12.6万家，共拥有有效发明专利107.7万件，占企业有效发明专利总量的62.3%；

3）国外申请人在华知识产权授权注册继续增长。上半年，国外申请人在华发明专利授权5.4万件，同比增长 30.0%；国外申请人在华商标注册量为9.0万件，同比增长7.5%。其中美国申请人在华发明专利授权、商标注册同比分别增长35.0%和8.9%。
 

资料来源：IPRdaily  2021-07-14
 

新闻链接：http://www.iprdaily.cn/news_28519.html
 

CNIPA Releases Data for the First Half of 2021
 

On 14 July 2021, at CNIPA’s regular third quarter press conference in Beijing, the semi-annual statistical data relating to patents, trademarks, geographical indications and layout design of integrated circuits were released.
 

The data contained three highlights:
 

1) The continued improvement in intellectual property rights’ examination. As of the end of June, the average examination period for invention patents had been reduced to 19.4 months; the examination period for high-value patents to 13.4 months; and the average examination period for trademark registration to less than 4 months.

2) The number of enterprises with invention patents had increased steadily. By the end of June, there were 270,000 enterprises with valid invention patents, an increase of 24,000 compared with the end of last year. Among these, 126,000 were high-tech enterprises with a total of 1.077 million effective invention patents, accounting for 62.3% of the total number of invention patents.

3) The number of intellectual property rights registered by foreign applicants in China continues to increase. In the first half of the year, foreign applicants registered 54,000 invention patents in China, a year-on-year increase of 30%, and 90,000 trademarks, an increase of 7.5% year-on-year. The number of American applicants for invention patents increased by 35.0% and for trademark registrations by 8.9%.

 

国知局就《专利权质押登记办法修改建议（征求意见稿）》公开征求意见
 

2021年7月20日，国家知识产权局发布《专利权质押登记办法修改建议（征求意见稿）》（《征求意见稿》），向公众征求意见。 

对比现行法律，《征求意见稿》的主要变化为：
 

1）在原来邮寄、当面递交的方式外，新增加网上办理的方式。

3）将通过邮寄、当面递交的办理时间由7日减少为5日。网上办理的时间为2日。

4）根据新规，出质人和质权人可以查阅国知局的登记文档。

5）当事人可以选择告知承诺方式办理登记。这意味着当事人只需承诺其有资格进行权利质押登记，而无需提交更多书面材料。同时意味着国知局将减少事前审查，而选择事后对失信行为进行处理。

以上旨提供更加规范、便利、高效的专利质押登记服务，促进知识产权质押融资。
 

新闻链接：http://www.cnipa.gov.cn/art/2021/7/20/art_75_165978.html
 

CNIPA Issues Suggestions on the Amendment of the Measures for the Registration of Patent Pledge (Draft for Comments)
 

On 20 July 2021, CNIPA released a draft Proposal on Revision of the Patent Pledge Registration Method for comment. 
 

The main changes to current law are:  
 

1) in addition to the original methods of mailing and submitting in person, an online processing method is introduced;

2) the processing time for mailing and submitting in person is reduced from seven to five days; online processing time is two days;

3) both pledgor and pledgee can consult CNIPA’s registration documents; and

4) the parties can make a commitment to meet relevant requirements instead of filing relevant documentation at the outset, provided they accept all legal liability for non-fulfilment of the commitment. This will make the registration process simpler and faster.
 

The aforementioned changes aim to facilitate and promote intellectual property pledge financing by providing a more standardized, convenient and efficient patent pledge registration service.

 

欧舒丹就其明星单品樱花润肤露维权，获赔900万元
 

M&L实验室公司（以下简称M&L公司，前名“欧舒丹公司/L’OCCITANESA”）是国际知名的生产香氛、面部和身体护理商品的跨国公司，始创了“L’OCCITANE/欧舒丹”品牌。2008年开始，欧舒丹樱花系列润肤露和沐浴啫喱（沐浴乳）作为欧舒丹樱花系列的主要商品进入中国并成为欧舒丹品牌的主力商品。2016年M&L公司注册了第17800581号樱花图形商标。2019年，M&L公司注意到，某电商平台上“andorheal旗舰店”的经营者君大生物科技发展有限公司（君大）店铺中销售一款名为“樱花高光身体乳”的商品，该款商品的瓶子形状、瓶身樱花图案以及瓶口设计与欧舒丹樱花润肤露外观十分相近。该涉嫌侵权商品的生产商为广州市爱莲化妆品有限公司（以下简称爱莲）。 
 

杭州一中院认为认定君大、爱莲构成商标侵权和不正当竞争，判决两公司停止侵权，君大公司赔偿300万元，爱莲公司赔偿600万元。两公司不服，向浙江高院提起上诉。浙江高院认为君大公司、爱莲公司构成商标侵权和不正当竞争。关于赔偿数额，两公司没有证据证明网店销量系刷单形成，因此一审法院认定赔偿数额的依据无误。且，两公司明知欧舒丹樱花系列商品有较高的知名度，仍恶意攀附商誉，从商标到商品包装全面模仿，侵权商品销售网页的商品介绍亦与欧舒丹樱花系列商品介绍近似，甚至有“数据来源于欧舒丹内部”的表述。在涉诉后，仍然没有停止侵权行为，侵权主观恶意明显， 造成损害后果进一步扩大。遂维持一审判决。
 

新闻链接：http://www.iprchn.com/cipnews/news_content.aspx?newsId=129794
 

L'OCCITANESA Awarded compensation of 9 Million Yuan (approx. US$ 1.386 Million) for trademark infringement
 

M&L Laboratory Company (formerly known as L’Occitanesa) is an internationally renowned multinational company that produces fragrance, facial and body care products under the brand name L'OCCITANESA.  Since 2008, its L'OCCITANESA cherry blossom series moisturizer and bath gel (bath lotion) have been its main products in China. In 2016 It registered a cherry blossom graphic trademark, No. 17800581, and in 2019 it became aware that a product named "Cherry Blossom Highlight Body Lotion" was being sold in Junda Biotechnology Development Company’s (Junda) online store. The product bore a cherry blossom graphic similar to the L’’OCCITANESA trademark and was packaged in a bottle similar to that in which the L’OCCITANESA product was marketed.  The manufacturer of the goods in question was Guangzhou Ailian company (Ailian).
 

The Hangzhou No.1 Intermediate People's Court held that both Junda and Ailian (Defendants) had engaged in trademark infringement and unfair competition.  It ordered the two companies to stop the infringement and pay 3 million yuan（approx. US $ 462,000） and 6 million yuan（approx. US $ 924,000） respectively as compensation. The Defendants appealed to the Zhejiang High People’s Court.
 

The Zhejiang High People’s Court upheld the decision of the Hangzhou No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court in relation to both trademark infringement and unfair competition. The Defendants knew that the L'OCCITANESA blossom products were famous and had maliciously taken advantage of the brand, imitating it comprehensively, both the trademark and packaging. Further, they had used product information similar to that used in relation to the L'OCCITANESA cherry blossom products – even including the expression "data comes from L'OCCITANESA " – and they had continued to infringe after the action was filed. The subjective malice of the Defendants’ actions was obvious.
 

As for the compensation award, the Court held that the Defendants had not proved that their sales volume had been generated by click farming (a method used to inflate sales volume as a means of demonstrating the goods’ popularity).  The basis for Hangzhou No.1 Intermediate People's Court’s compensation determination was, therefore, correct.