The sound of camel bells echoes through time; sails in the wind connect the world. In the autumn of 2013, President Xi Jinping proposed the significant initiatives of jointly building the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. This has injected fresh momentum into global economic growth, created new avenues for development, and established a new platform for international economic cooperation.
Over the past decade, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has become a major practical endeavor in building a community with a shared future for humanity. The ancient Silk Road, spanning thousands of years, has been revitalized in this new era. Intellectual property (IP) cooperation under the BRI stands as a vivid example of this renewed vigor. China has continued to expand its openness and share development achievements with BRI countries. Patent applications from these countries have steadily increased, and multilateral and bilateral exchanges and cooperation have progressed smoothly, forming a new symphony of IP collaboration in the modern age.
Finding the "Greatest Common Divisor" for Innovation and Development
"IP systems play a vital role in promoting the BRI. China firmly implements strict IP protection, legally safeguarding the IP rights of all enterprises while fostering a favorable business and innovation environment. We hope all parties will strengthen dialogue, expand cooperation, and achieve mutually beneficial outcomes, promoting more effective protection and utilization of IP, and jointly building a road of innovation to better benefit the people of all nations." In a congratulatory message sent to the 2018 Belt and Road High-Level Conference on IP, reflecting his serious attention to BRI IP cooperation, President Xi Jinping highlighted the importance of IP in advancing the BRI and expressed high hopes for enhanced cooperation under the initiative.
Since the inception of the BRI, China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) have jointly hosted three Belt and Road High-Level Conferences on IP in 2016, 2018 and 2024. The former two conferences drew participation from over 50 national, international, and regional IP organizations, demonstrating the widespread recognition of the BRI in the IP field. The Belt and Road IP cooperation mechanism has become one of the multilateral platforms for professional dialogue and cooperation under the BRI.
Increasing consensus on shared values and ideas has been gathered. The two conferences resulted in the adoption of the "Joint Initiative for Strengthening Cooperation Between Countries along the Belt and Road in the Field of Intellectual Property" and the "Joint Statement on Pragmatic Cooperation in the Field of Intellectual Property among Countries Along the Belt and Road", establishing a regular mechanism for IP cooperation. Three key outcomes - the Third Belt and Road High-Level Conference on IP, the "Joint Statement of the First China-Central Asia Heads of Intellectual Property Office Meeting", and the Renewal of the Agreement on Enhancing Belt and Road Intellectual Property Cooperation and the agreement on its amendment and extension with the World Intellectual Property Organization and its supplementary agreement for extension - were incorporated into the list of achievements at the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation.
The BRI's IP cooperation network continues to expand. At the First Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in 2017, CNIPA, representing the Chinese government, signed an intergovernmental agreement with WIPO to strengthen IP cooperation under the BRI, making WIPO one of the first international organizations to sign a BRI agreement with China. In 2023, CNIPA co-hosted the first China-Central Asia Heads of IP Office Meeting with the five Central Asian countries, issuing a joint statement emphasizing the shared commitment to building the BRI IP cooperation mechanism and enhancing pragmatic cooperation. IP exchanges and cooperation under frameworks such as China-ASEAN, China-Central Asia, BRICS, China-Mongolia-Russia, China-Africa, and China-Latin America have deepened. As of now, China has established IP cooperation relationships with more than 60 IP administrations in BRI countries and international and regional IP organizations. Over 110 IP cooperation documents have been signed, shaping a new international IP cooperation landscape of "multilateral, neighboring, plurilateral, and bilateral" coordinated progress.
BRI IP cooperation projects have yielded fruitful results. China has actively promoted communication on IP policies, personnel training, degree education, IP examination, protection, and utilization with BRI countries. To date, over 50 training sessions have been organized for BRI countries, training more than 1,300 IP officials and professionals from these nations. Through the BRI IP master degree education program, more than 230 trainees have been enrolled. Additionally, more than 30 experts have been sent to support the capacity-building of IP systems in BRI countries.
Creating a New Path for Win-Win International Trade
On August 29, 2022, the first "IP+ Chengdu-Europe Express" train sounded its horn and departed from the Chengdu International Railway Port. Carrying 103 types of products with independent IPRs across 36 general categories, worth nearly 100 million yuan, the train headed for Poland, Hungary and Russia. Today, the Chengdu-Europe Express, loaded with products with independent IPRs, continues its journey.
"In the past two years, we have exported over 300,000 televisions with independent IPRs to BRI countries via the Chengdu-Europe Express. Compared to sea shipping, this route saves half the time, further advancing our brand's entry into the global market," said Gao Zhiyuan, Manager of the Operations Department at Chengdu Konka Electronics Co., Ltd.
The BRI has enabled Chinese innovation to reach the world. From 2013 to 2023, patent grants in BRI countries have grown by an average of 20% annually. Notably, core industries in the digital economy and green, low-carbon technologies have seen rapid growth in patent filings. The number of Chinese enterprises with invention patents in the core industries of digital economy in BRI countries increased from 206 in 2013 to 758 in 2023, with a cumulative total of 4,441 since 2013. From 2016 to 2023, 1,314 Chinese enterprises filed green, low-carbon patents in BRI countries, contributing significantly to the digital and green development of these regions.
Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software Co., Ltd. (Xiaomi) is one of the leading Chinese companies in patent filings in BRI countries. By June 2024, Xiaomi's smartphones had entered over 100 markets, including many BRI countries.
"One of the key reasons Xiaomi products can successfully enter overseas markets is IP. In addition to filing patents with the 'five offices' (China, the US, Europe, Japan, and Republic of Korea), we have also obtained patents in countries such as Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Thanks to the BRI IP cooperation policies, we can leverage our accumulated technologies through patent portfolios in various countries, ensuring strong support for technology transfer and enhancing our product competitiveness," said Li Yanjun, Xiaomi's Senior Patent Counsel.
Currently, CNIPA has established Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) cooperation with 18 BRI partners, including Singapore, Poland, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the Eurasian Patent Organization, and the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization, covering 66 BRI countries to support enterprises with overseas patent filings. Additionally, China has become an International Searching Authority and International Preliminary Examining Authority for Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications in 10 BRI countries, including Angola, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand. CNIPA has also been steadily promoting the "3+3" pilot project for mutual protection of geographical indications with Thailand. Through these IP collaborations under the BRI, Chinese enterprises have gained broader opportunities for international growth.
Creating a Business Environment that Protects Innovation
As China continues to open up, a robust IP protection environment remains essential.
In 2023, the satisfaction of foreign-funded companies with China's IP protection reached 80.55 points, a 1.44 point increase from 2022. At the same time, the number of foreign-owned IP applications, grants and IP in force have increased rapidly in China. By June 2024, the number of foreign-owned valid invention patents and registered trademarks in China had reached 919,000 and 2.135 million respectively, up 3.9% and 3.8% year on year, showing foreign companies' high regard for the Chinese market and their strong confidence in China's IP protection.
For years, China has maintained equal and fair IP protection for both domestic and foreign enterprises, successfully resolving multiple IP disputes involving BRI countries, earning high praise from foreign businesses.
At the same time, protecting the overseas IP rights of Chinese enterprises is equally important. CNIPA and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) have established a National Overseas IP Dispute Response & Guidance Center, with 71 branches in 29 provinces and five overseas centers. These centers provide professional and efficient guidance to Chinese companies on IP disputes abroad.
In one case in late 2020, a Polish distributor of Anhui's children products company was accused of infringing a European design patent related to a baby stroller. With the help of a local branch of the National Overseas IP Dispute Response & Guidance Center, a strategy was crafted by an Anhui-based law firm. After nearly a year of effort, the European Intellectual Property Office declared the patent in question devoid of novelty, and the complaint was dismissed, resulting in a victory for the Chinese company.
As the BRI continues to expand along both land and sea routes, China's IP protection environment remains a solid foundation for both inbound and outbound innovation and trade.
The BRI has not only advanced China's development but also benefited the world. IP remains a vital link in fostering communication and shared development among BRI countries. From September 11 to 13, 2024, the Third Belt and Road High-Level Conference on IP will be held in Beijing, gathering around 70 representatives from IP institutions in BRI countries, international and regional organizations, embassies in China, as well as domestic IP representatives, industry leaders, and scholars to enhance exchanges themed on "Openness, Cooperation, Development, and Mutual benefit". The conference will further promote extensive, practical, and closer IP cooperation among BRI countries, enhancing the role of IP systems in fueling innovation and contributing to the innovation-driven development and economic prosperity of the Belt and Road region.