War on piracy

China's Ministry of Public Security is urging police to step up the battle against piracy in software, CDs and DVDs.

A circular from the ministry released on March 23 said the fight against piracy was still difficult and should be a priority for public security departments nationwide.

Public security departments will offer rewards for information about criminal piracy and arrest organizers and ringleaders, said the circular.

The police will also strengthen checks on printing companies, as well as CD and DVD production companies.

Law enforcement agencies launched a 100-day nationwide campaign against pirated audio and video products and computer software from July 15 to late October last year. Police seized 19.46 million illegal copies on average each month from July through September, more than doubling the monthly average for January to June last year.

Youth IPR awareness campaign

The State Intellectual Property Office and the Chinese Society of Education jointly launched the first China Youth Innovation Contest on March 26, which aims to spread the word among teenagers about intellectual property rights protection.

Students in primary, secondary and vocational schools are eligible to participate in the national contest, which is divided into preliminary and final competitions, according to organizers.

The contest includes a quiz on patent law and competitions in drawing, essay writing, creating cartoons, model design and innovative ideas. Final contests will be held between July 19 and 26 in Beijing.

Steno machine wins award

The Yawei Chinese Stenograph, the first electronic steno machine in China with its own intellectual property rights, has won the second prize at the 2006 National Technology Innovation Awards. The inventor of the steno machine, Tang Yawei, 92, is the award's oldest recipient.

It is the only steno machine invented to date that is compatible with personal computers (PCs) in China and can be connected directly to a PC to simultaneously process material. Twin operation is also supported so that when one operator types notes, another can proofread and edit at the same time. The device made it possible for the first time in China for a speaker to have transcriptions right after giving a speech.

Invented in 1994, Yawei Chinese Stenograph has made many improvements, including those that enable it to work without a PC.

Science endowment

The Chinese government will earmark 4.3 billion yuan for the National Natural Science Foundation this year, up 20 percent from 2006, the foundation president announced on March 20.

Along with other endowments, the foundation plans total investment of about 5 billion yuan in 2007, said Chen Yiyu.

Mostly government-funded, the foundation is the official body responsible for allocating research money to organizations and individual applicants for research in natural science.

This year the foundation will strengthen financial support for research that shows innovative capability, said Chen.

The foundation received 67,800 applications in 2006 and assisted 13,700 projects.

Since its founding in 1981, the foundation has funded nearly 100,000 research projects with a total endowment of 20 billion yuan.

Every Chinese film pirated

Anti-piracy officials in South China's Guangdong Province, acting on information provided by the Motion Picture Association (MPA), raided a pirate optical disc manufacturing and storage facility on March 17, seizing 1.8 million optical discs, of which more than 1.6 million are suspected of to be illegal copies of legitimate movies and television shows.

Also seized in the raid were 30 machines used to erase Source Identification (SID) codes that can allow investigators to determine the manufacturer of an optical disc. Officials detained two men believed to be managers of the facility, and are continuing their investigation.

The seized discs infringed on copyrights held by dozens of MPA member companies, as well as every Chinese film released to date this year, and many US, South Korean and Japanese animated and television series titles.

China Stories copyright violated

The Shanghai No 1 Intermediate People's Court has ordered Yanbian University Publishing House to pay 60,000 yuan and Hymall Supermarket to pay 5,500 yuan to Shanghai Literature and Art Press for copyright violations, Shanghai Daily reported.

The plaintiff said it took its editors eight years to publish its bestselling China Stories. The original publication, narrating China's history from two million years ago to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), is composed of 16 volumes and sells for 1,100 yuan. But Yanbian University Publishing House published a four-volume series under the same name with a similar cover and design. That series went on sale at Hymall Supermarket for 200 yuan last July.

Chou-karaoke dispute

Taiwan pop king Jay Chou's songs will likely be withdrawn from karaoke venues such as Holiday and Cash Box, which are affiliated with his former agent Alfa Music, Beijing Morning Post reports.

The withdrawal comes at the expiration of Jay Chou's contract with Alfa Music. The dispute reportedly claims that Chou owns the copyright to all the songs on his albums, and that Alfa Music only had power of attorney during their contractual period, which expired on March 1.

The pop singer's agency on the Chinese mainland, Jushi Music, says that they are now in talks to renew the contract with Alfa, and that the centers will only have to stop playing his songs and pay copyright fees if they cannot reach agreement.

(China Daily 04/02/2007 page9)

2013-07-17