SMIC patents

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) became the top recipient of wafer foundry patents approved by the Chinese authorities in 2008. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) ranked seventh, Taiwan's Digi Times reported.

SMIC obtained 621 foundry patents during 2008, compared to 152 during 2007. Digi Times reported, citing the China Semiconductor Industry Association.

Rival TSMC saw its patent applications in China drop from 174 to 173, the association said.

SMIC also applied for 55 IC packaging and testing technology patents in 2008, up from 11 filed in 2007.

In the IC design arena, China-based ZTE and Huawei Technologies were granted 998 and 432 patents in 2008, respectively, compared to ZTE's 354 and Huawei's 288 in 2007, according to the association.

Tencent on the net

Chinese instant messaging operator Tencent said it has obtained more than 400 patents, making it one of the world's largest patent-holding Internet companies.

Company executives attributed it to increased research and development activities.

The Shenzhen-based company has established a research institute with an investment of more than 100 million yuan.

Tencent also attracted talent from technology giants Microsoft, Google, IBM and Huawei Technologies, according to the company.

About half of Tencent's employees are working on research-related fields.

Software case

US software companies Microsoft and Adobe and Australia's Altium have settled a lawsuit with Shenzhen-based CRS Electronics Co Ltd.

CRS Electronics has agreed to pay the three companies 780,000 yuan for installing unlicensed software products.

Shenzhen's intellectual property enforcement division in January fined CRS Electronics 100,000 yuan after Microsoft, Adobe and Altium accused the company of installing unlicensed software.

Last November, Microsoft and Adobe filed a lawsuit in a Shenzhen court. Altium joined the lawsuit in February.

CRS acknowledged that Microsoft's Windows operating systems were installed on 200 of its computers, and that Microsoft Office software was installed on at least 60 percent of its other computers.

The court ruled that the company failed to provide proof that it had obtained licensing from Microsoft.

Trademarks

Applications for trademark registration in China reached 380,000 in the first half of this year, up 7.7 percent year-on-year, according to the State Administration for Industry and Commerce.

China has 2.4 million registered trademarks, ranking the largest in the world, according to the administration.

(Source: China Daily)