Recently, a legislative seminar entitled the "Resolutions of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone on Sternly Cracking Down Intellectual Property Infringement Act" was held in Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province.  Representatives from the city's Legal Affairs Committee of the People's Congress, IP Administration, Public Security Bureau, People's Procuratorate, People's Court, Industrial and Commercial Administration and the Shenzhen Customs Office as well as the people from the enterprise circle took part in the seminar and also held in-depth discussions.

Xu Youjun, Director of the Shenzhen IP Administration pointed out in the seminar that Shenzhen has reached the economic level of the medium-grade developed countries, and its IP development status is also placed in the forefront of the nation.  Many different kinds of China's IP cases were found in Shenzhen for the first time in recent years.  Conditions are available for the city to take the lead and try to make some breakthroughs in terms of IP protection and cracking down on infringement act making use of the legislative power entitled to the special economic zone.  Shenzhen becomes the first in initiating legislature.  This will also produce important impacts throughout the country. Therefore, enhancing IP protection is also one of the important contents to accelerate the building of an innovative-type of city.  The twenty-four projects for the "Program of Intellectual Property Strategy in Shenzhen City (2006-2010)" will be implemented by the city this year, while the formulation and promulgation of the "Regulations of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone on Sternly Cracking Down Intellectual Property Infringement Act" will be put in the first place of the Program.  Formulation of this Measures means, through legislature, intensification the efforts of punishment on IP infringement criminal defense, extending the IP infringement cost, and effectively containing illegal criminal act and protecting the initiatives of the enterprises for innovation.

In the seminar, representatives from all walks of life made a lot of suggestions to numerous difficult questions pertaining to IP protection.  Consensus had been reached that while formulating the "Regulations", it would be adequate for the special economic zone "not to require everything that is comprehensive but something that is new" and that the "special economic zone should first play a pioneering role in instituting legislature." And the focus of legislature should be laid on the actual situation of the special economic zone and the urgent problems pending for solution, e.g. some of the prominent problems in Shenzhen or China relating to serious trade secret infringement, fraudulent use of trademarks, and counterfeiting of brand-names as well as the evidential responsibilities in the safeguarding right proceeding and the calculation of compensation amount.  It was also suggested that an effective and long-term mechanism for the "united law-enforcement" of IP protection be first explored in the legislative form against the current practice that multi-administrative departments are partitioned in law enforcement.