Rising Awareness of Copyright Protection

A reflection on the year of 2006 has will reveal that copyright is intertwined with a series of social events. Webcast, computer games, Karaoke, software and internet music ...... all these things that have become part of our daily life are given a special meaning with the keyword of "copyright".

In 2006, copyright protection received unprecedented attention both in the cyberspace and in the real world. People expressed their views on the copyright charge of Karaoke; game players applauded the crackdown on "private server" and "robot program"; kids wrote in their childish handwriting on the scroll of "Combat Piracy"......Despite of some people's misunderstanding and misinterpretation of copyright events, it is inspiring that this attention itself has reflected the increased awareness of copyright protection by the general public. During the fifteen years since the adoption of the Copyright Law of the PRC, great progress has been achieved both in the copyright protection campaign and the public awareness of copyright protection.

Now the year of 2006 is not far behind us and the year of 2007 is with us. In this spring with full of hopes, let us expect a bright future ahead.

Copyrighted Software Reshuffling Software Market

Event replay: In 2003, government agencies in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai and Tianjin completed the procurement of copyrighted software. In 2004, provincial government agencies completed the procurement of copyrighted software. In 2005, the government at the prefecture level started to purchase copyrighted software. In 2006, at the initiative of relevant state commissions and departments, a wave of copyrighted software swept across all industries and sectors. In February, 2006, the National Steering Team of Promoting Copyrighted Enterprise Software Use was established to lead the campaign of using copyrighted software in enterprises.

Copyrighted Software As an Inevitable Trend

In 2006, the first year of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan, the Chinese government and enterprises promoted the use of copyrighted software with an enthusiasm higher than anytime in China's history in an effort to encourage self innovation and protect intellectual property rights. In mid April, 2006, in particular, the Ministry of Information Industry, the National Copyright Administration, the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Finance promulgated an important joint notice, requiring that all computers manufactured or distributed in China must be pre-installed with copyrighted operating systems. It triggered a wave of using copyrighted software in China and was praised as the "most severe copyrighting order" of the Chinese government.  

Xiaohong Yan, deputy Commissioner of the National Copyright Administration, made the following remarks during his inspection of the "Copyrighted Software Exhibition Center" located in the Kemao Building of Zhongguancun: As the promotion of copyrighted software use by government agencies scales new heights, the National Copyright Administration will promote the use of copyrighted software in enterprises this year. He was also quoted as saying that in order to further protect intellectual property rights, in addition to promoting the use of copyrighted software in enterprises as their focus, the National Copyright Administration is also considering establishing a "Black List" system to disclose enterprises that refuse to use copyrighted software.

Obviously, the use of copyrighted software in enterprises is an inevitable trend. Senior officials with the National Copyright Administration made it very clear that large enterprises will be the focus of promoting copyrighted software at this stage. Nearly 300 well-known large domestic and international enterprises such as Lenovo, China Telcom, Sinopec, Siemens jointly signed and published the Initiative of Using Copyrighted Software by Enterprises, committing and advocating the use of copyrighted software. It lifted the curtain of promoting the use of copyrighted software in large enterprises. 

Who Benefited from Copyrighted Software?

In April 2006, nine government agencies including the National Copyright Administration and the Ministry of Information Industry officially promulgated the Implementation Methods on Promoting the Use of Copyrighted Software in Enterprises, requiring that large enterprises in China, including State-Owned Enterprises, joint ventures, Foreign-Funded Companies and Wholly Foreign-Funded Companies shall use copyrighted software within a certain time period.

This Implementation Methods first prioritized the enterprises to use copyrighted software, with large enterprises as the focus, leading by State-Owned Enterprises, Foreign Funded enterprises and private enterprises, followed by small and medium-sized enterprises. It recognized enterprises that made outstanding accomplishment in using copyrighted software and maintained a "Black List" to disclose problem enterprises and punish those with serious violation. The Implementation Methods also require that the regulators and associations of different industries shall start an investigation and publish their results. In addition, the nine government agencies and each province and city shall hold copyright training sessions for different industries and enterprises.

Previously China's software industry was plagued by piracy. Pirated software was available at a low price, so no enterprise or individual would choose to pay hundred times more on copyrighted software. There were even those who felt that software should be ‘free of charge'. With the campaign of using copyrighted software, the software industry in China has been put in a better position to invest in research and development so to grow," said a manager of a domestic software company.

Obviously, as the market matures, domestic companies will invest an ever increasing amount of money in software and IT. IDC projected that the IT expenditure in China would hit RMB288.3 billion, with an increasingly high ratio for software and service procurement. Domestic software companies such as Rising, Jiangmin and Kingsoft will hold an ever larger market share in the software market. 

Comment: It is a generally accepted rule that you have to pay to use what belongs to other people. This self-evident rule could not be practiced amongst the software users in China for a long time. With the conclusion of using copyrighted software in government agencies at all levels and the promotion of copyrighted software use in large enterprises, a concept that "Using Copyrighted Software is Respectful" gradually held ground. The implementation of the policy that requires pre-installation of copyrighted software on computers sold in China has made this campaign real to every individual user. The R&D of copyrighted software and manufacturers are embracing a bright future backed by the government support as never seen before. We have every reason to believe that protecting the nation's creativity of and rejuvenating national software industry will no longer be an empty slogan. 　

Announcing the Fee Standard of Karaoke

Event Replay: At the end of July, 2006, the National Copyright Administration made an announcement on the charge of Karaoke. In August 2006, the National Copyright Administration publicly announced that a daily copyright fee of RMB12 would be charged to every Karaoke room. On November 9, 2006, the National Copyright Administration officially announced the copyright fee standard. It was covered by various media, leading to heated public debates. Due to biased coverage of some media, this fee standard became a source of contention.

Focus of the Contention: Is the Karaoke copyright fee an administrative charge? Is the fee standard of RMB12 too high? Does the China Audio-visual Copyright Collective Management Organization in preparation of establishment have the authority to collect the fee?

Authority Perspective: The National Copyright Administration first denied the wording of "administrative charge" because it did not set the fee standard. According to Regulations on Copyright Collective Management, the Fee Standard of Copyright Use in the Karaoke Industry was drafted by the collective management organization, and was adopted after publicly announced by the National Copyright Administration.

As for the comment that the charge is too high, the person in charge at the National Copyright Administration held that different interest group may have different opinions on the fee standard. From the comments we solicited in the initial period, representatives from a majority of regions and sectors supported this charge method and the fee standard. For instance, amongst the 17 feedback we received from recreational industry associations during the public announcement of this fee standard, 12 voted for this standard. Five out of a total of seven representatives who spoke at the tea meeting to solicit opinions were for this standard. Furthermore, this fee standard is not rigid, rather, it is flexible. The National Copyright Administration made a lot of effort to convince and coordinate the collective management organization entrusted by the stakeholders and at its consent, it is publicly announced that this standard set a ceiling for the charge. A lower rate may apply subject to different regions and scale of the Karaoke bars.
As for the comment whether the China Audio-Visual Copyright Collective Management Association which has not completed its official filing procedure has the authority to set the standard and collect the fee, pursuant to the Regulation on Copyright Collective Management, the copyright collective management organization must submit copyright use charge standard (draft) etc to the relevant copyright management department of the State Council. Therefore, China Audio-Visual Copyright Collective Management Association (Preparatory committee) has the legal obligation rather than a right to set the fee standard.  　　

Anti-Online Piracy in Full Flair

Event Replay: On February 15, 2006, the National Copyright Administration reported the result of anti online piracy between September and December 2005 and disclosed twelve serious cases of online copyright infringement. At a meeting held in October, 2006, the National Copyright Administration announced that starting from then to the beginning of 2007, a new round of a three-month fight against online copyright infringement would be launched nationwide. Subsequently, an unprecedented and widespread combat was carried out throughout the country.

Background: Copyright Infringement Disturbed the Order of Online Communication　　

With its wide use and development, the Internet technology has been used in copyright infringement. There are different forms of copyright infringement, such as providing illegal music downloading services, illegal movie downloading, illegal publish of literary works, software downloading, or even using "private servers" and "robot program" in online game, etc. There seems to be no end to the list. Online piracy not only harms the legitimate rights of the copyright holders, but also gives rise to a large number of conflicts and disputes, disturbing the order of the online communication. It has become one of the destabilizing factors for the harmonious development of the Internet culture. More seriously, as the Internet communication respects no border, the online piracy has a negative political, economic and social impact worldwide. It also seriously tainted China's international image. Under these circumstances, the National Copyright Administration, joining efforts with other agencies, launched a combat against online infringement and achieved some initial results. 　

In May 2006, the State Council promulgated the Regulations on the Protection of the Right of Communication through Information Network, which was officially adopted on July 1. This Regulation clarified for the first time in legal terms that behavior of online dissemination of information, how to protect online copyright and how to combat copyright infringements and piracy. This is the basic guideline for copyright protection, enforcement and development of relevant industries in the Internet environment. It also provided an important legal basis for the Internet law enforcement and copyright protection. After some initial survey and preparation for a period of time, this special action had its curtain lifted in the fourth quarter.

Dynamics: Some Key Cases Already Closed　　

According to relevant officials in charge at the National Copyright Administration, this targeted action stepped up the closing down of illegal website. Websites that mainly engaged in copyright infringements were shut down by the telecommunication watchdogs; Those with serious violations were investigated; The focus was to combat illegal dissemination of music, movies, software and textbooks via the Internet. It strengthened the combat on "private server" and "robot program". Focus was also put on investigating acts of intentional avoidance or destruction of technology protective measures and intentional deletion or amendment of electronic information of copyright management. More efforts were also put on investigating the manufacturing and distribution of tools and equipment used to avoid and destroy the technological protection. 

It is reported that in order to ensure the tangible results of the website management and precise strike against pirates, the National Copyright Administration put together leads of 302 cases of website copyright infringement at the earlier stage of its action, involving 31 provinces and cities across the country. Fifty cases out of them were among the key cases under monitoring of the National Copyright Administration. The nineteen accident-prone regions such as Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Jilin, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hubei, Hunan, Sichuan, Qingdao, Xiamen, Xi'an, etc were listed as key locations of this action. By now, a number of key cases are closed or in the process of conclusion.
Comment: The advent of the Internet has brought changes and new meanings to human society and our life that cannot be overestimated. However, the Internet should not become a heaven for copyright infringements. With the promulgation of the Regulations on the Protection of the Right of Communication through Information Network and the follow-up actions, a number of cases have been closed and transferred to the legal process. Recently, the first criminal case of online copyright infringement in Fujian Province was tried and the two criminals involved in online search, receiving and downloading music were sent to jail. This marked a new stage of the Internet information dissemination and management in China. On December 15, 2006, the National Copyright Administration and Motion Picture Association of US, Business Software Alliance, Association of American Publishers, the Publishers Association of UK signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of a Coordination Mechanism for Online Copyright Protection in Beijing, building a cross border network for the Internet information dissemination protection. The copyright protection in the cyberspace will be all the more robust and powerful.

Enterprises' Joint-fighting Against Counterfeits

Event Replay: The 2006 International Copyright Forum was jointly hosted by the National Copyright Administration and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on September 5th, 2006. At the forum, leading companies such as Shanda Networking, Sina Group, Microsoft China, Netease Group, Beijing Kingsoft and Sunchime Cartoon Group proposed the establishment of the China Enterprise Copyright Alliance. On December 11th, 2006, the founding ceremony of the China Enterprise Copyright Alliance (CECA) and the Chinese Enterprise Summit on Copyright was held in the People's Great Hall, marking the birth of the first business-initiated copyright alliance thanks to the guidance and support of the Chinese government. The Alliance is reportedly to have a legal assistance center with professional lawyers, who will provide free legal advice and assistance to the Alliance members in an effort to safeguard their lawful rights and enhance the business self-regulation. The Alliance also set up the CECA Foundation to support its researches on copyright-related industries or members' selected copyright programs.

Background: Broadened Definition of Copyright

The definition of copyright has been extended beyond its traditional cultural boundary to include computer software, applied arts and artifacts, architecture exterior design and designs of industrial products. This has made the word "copyright" so popular and important in various companies. According to 2003 statistics by the Copyright Alliance USA, the output value of the core copyright industry accounted for 5.8% of the US GDP. Taking account of related industries, the combined output value amounted to 12% of the US GDP, an equivalence of 70% to 80% of China's GDP during the same year. China lags far behind in this area. At the same time, in developing the limited core copyright industries such as online game, software and cartoon, Chinese companies have suffered from a variety of copyright infringement and piracy. The fight against piracy calls for more than legal and administrative efforts. It is imperative that companies should take unified actions against piracy and protect their own lawful interest. It is against this background that the China Enterprise Copyright Alliance made its debut.

Welcome Voice: Companies Need to Protect Innovation

Jun Tang, President of Shanda Networking Group based in Shanghai, said that his company specializing in online game has been troubled by "private servers" and "robot programs" and has benefited from the IPR protection. According to him, Shanda Networking Group has made substantial progress in technological innovation and proprietary IPR system, which has become the company's foundation for growth and source of income. Shanda has also established an IPR Protection foundation with RMB8 million to support the combat against online copyright infringement. Besides, the vigorous campaign against online copyright infringement and piracy initiated by the Chinese government has improved the IPR protection environment for businesses.

As a representative from an IPR-intensive company, Fengming Liu, Vice President of Microsoft China said that the sustained innovation of a company would be impossible without a strong IPR protection system. Quansheng Zhang, Head of Business Software Alliance China, believed that the CECA came at the right time because it could promote the software industry by playing the role of a bridge between the industry and government and between the industry and the market (or users), and by serving its members. As a senior IPR scholar, Chuntian Liu, Professor of Renmin University, held that the government should influence companies' choice by adopting certain policies, laws and regulations to gradually build a legal system for IPR protection. Regarding the increasingly rampant online copyright infringement, Xiaoqiang Hou, deputy editor-in-chief of Sina, pointed out that the orderly development of the Internet required us to consider counter measures and regulate the dissemination and use of information based on an in-depth understanding of the development of network economy.  

Comment: The ultimate goal for copyright protection is to protect a nation's creativity and to foster the innovative growth of its industries. Therefore, the battle of IPR protection calls for the active participation of more companies. Besides the enhanced government's action, it needs the creation and nurturing of industry associations, collective management companies of copyright and intermediaries to facilitate the effective contact between the IPR holder and the user. In this regard, the leadership role should be played by companies themselves because they are most motivated and know best their own needs. The end of 2006 has witnessed the establishment of the CECA, which certainly has many tasks ahead of it. Among them are encouraging leading companies to be role-models, setting up communication channels and dialogue mechanisms between government and businesses, businesses and industry association, businesses and stakeholders, as well as attracting more companies to actively participate in the alliance's activities with the government support and working closely with the government in the combat against copyright infringement and piracy, so as to protect its members' interest. These are what it can and should fulfill.

(www.chinaxwcb.com)

2013-07-17