On the morning of April 23, the 2021 High-level Forum on China IP Protection was held in Beijing. The forum was presided over by Gan Shaoning, Deputy Commissioner of CNIPA. Shen Changyu, Commissioner of CNIPA, He Rong, Vice-president of the Supreme People's Court, Yan Xiaohong, Vice Director of Culture, History and Study Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and Yin Yong, Deputy Mayor of the People's Government of Beijing Municipality, delivered keynote speeches.

Shen Changyu said that since the last forum was held, China has made significant progress in IP protection under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core. Currently, IP offices nationwide are earnestly learning and putting into practice the guiding principles in the important speech made by General Secretary Xi Jinping at the 25th Group Study Session of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee. He stressed that efforts will be stepped up in five aspects in the future: speeding up top-level design for IP protection, keeping pace with the times to improve the IP legal system, building the work pattern for comprehensive IP protection, enhancing IP protection at the source, and promoting equal protection at home and abroad.

He rong said that since the 18th CPC National Congress, the people's courts have explored a juridical IP protection path with Chinese characteristics by thoroughly implemented Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law and the decisions and arrangements made by the CPC Central committee. This year, the people's courts will continue to put innovation at the core in China's modernization construction, focus efforts on high-quality development and comprehensively enhance juridical IP protection, in order to create a sound legal environment to boost innovation-driven development and realize the country's self-reliance and self-improvement in science and technology, he added.

Yan Xiaohong gave a keynote speech focusing on the importance of copyright, revision and implementation of the Copyright Law and enhancement of copyright protection. He said that the the definition of works in the revised Copyright Law is both the biggest highlight and the biggest difficult point in actual implementation. In the context of explosive growth of works, greater efforts are needed to identify the works in the sense of the Copyright Law according to the definition of works therein and enhance protection.

Yin Yong pointed out that IP is an important support to build China into an innovative country as well as an important field in global competition. The CPC Beijing Municipal Committee and the People's Government will continue to thoroughly implement the guiding principles in the important speech made by General Secretary Xi Jinping and firmly grasp the strategic positioning of building the international innovation center and the "two zones" to intensify IP protection, Yin informed the crowd.

Director Liu Hua of the WIPO Office in China and famous scholars Wu Handong and Yi Jiming in the IP field also spoke at the main forum.

There were also two parallel sessions titled "Perfecting Protection System, Constructing Giant Protection Pattern" and "Enhancing Rule of Law, Implementing the Punitive Compensation System", at which a number of guests from home and abroad were invited to share their ideas on comprehensively enhancing IP protection in the new era.

The Forum is co-hosted by CIP News and the WIPO Office in China. With four already in the book, the forum has drawn extensive attention from both home and abroad.(Translated from CNIPA Website Chinese Version)