China Watch Blog

China Watch Blog has learnt that more than 4,000 people have been arrested for violating intellectual property rights (IPR) since last October as tougher punishments will be enforced to combat the “rampant” problem.

According to Gao Feng, deputy director of the economic crimes investigation bureau at the Ministry of Public Security, his agency had uncovered more than 2,000 cases since China launched a six-month campaign to boost enforcement of intellectual property rights protection in October.

The financial value of the cases totaled 2.3 billion yuan ($348 million), Gao said, adding that the number of arrests and cases had tripled from the same time last year as had their financial value.

“On the one hand they demonstrate the achievements we’ve made in cracking down on the IPR violations, on the other hand they indicate that IPR violation is still rampant and frequent,” Gao said. “So we want to introduce heavier punishments.”

On Tuesday, the Supreme People’s Court (SPC), the Supreme People’s Procuratorate and the Ministry of Public Security jointly issued a judicial document to enforce the crackdown on IPR infringement, the China Daily reported.

The document covers a number of areas concerning IPR violation including proof of collection, standard penalties that should be applied and accounting the transaction value.

“Our previous law enforcement experience showed that current laws and judicial interpretations are not clear or specific enough, especially considering the rising number of cases through the Internet,” said Xiong Xuanguo, vice-president of the SPC.

Conviction of IPR violation will occur if a person puts other people’s work, including print, music, film, TV, photo, video, record or software on the Internet for profit without the approval of the copyright holder where one of the following conditions apply: a transaction value of more than 50,000 yuan; more than 500 pieces of work; the hits reach 50,000; the number of registered members reaches more than 1,000 if membership is required for access.

“The clearer and more concrete legal basis will help the courts to try IPR violation cases,” Xiong said. “The more specific the regulations, the more practical the law enforcement.”

“In recent years, IPR infringements on the Internet have sharply increased in China, and the methods of committing such crimes have also become more complicated and technologically advanced,” said Xiong, adding that it presents challenges not only to the courts, but also to police investigations.

According to the top court, 39,913 IPR cases were heard in courts between January and November 2010 – a year-on-year jump of 64 percent.

China Watch Blog has learnt that Guangzhou’s 2010 GDP surged by 100 billion renminbi (RMB) or yuan or 12.5% to hit a trillion RMB, becoming the third Chinese city after Beijing and Shanghai to register annual GDP of a trillion RMB.

“Guangzhou has fulfilled all major tasks set in the 11th Five-Year Plan,” proclaimed Guangzhou Executive Vice Mayor Wu Yimin on January 5 during a briefing for Guangzhou’s deputies to the provincial people’s congress. Guangzhou’s annual GDP broke the 500-billion-RMB mark during the term of the 10th Five-Year Plan and rose by 100 billion RMB a year to reach 1 trillion RMB in the final year of the term of the 11th Five-Year Plan.

GD Business reported Wu as saying that a modern industrial framework is largely in place in Guangzhou, and that an industrial structure with the service industry as the center has basically been established. Through continuous optimization and upgrading of the industrial structure, Guangzhou will speed up the shift of the focus of its economic development to the tertiary sector and the city’s economy will become increasingly service-oriented.

The primary, secondary and tertiary sectors in Guangzhou now account for 2.5 percent, 39.7 percent and 57.8 percent of the city’s economy, respectively, compared with 1.9 percent, 37.2 percent and 60.9 percent at the end of the term of the 10th Five-Year Plan.

In the first 11 months of last year, Guangzhou’s service industry surged by an estimated 12.6 percent, accounting for 60 percent of the city’s GDP, and contributing 7.5 percentage points to the city’s economic growth rate; it provided 56.1 percent of jobs in the city, higher than the target set in the 11th Five-Year Plan.

In the years ahead, Guangzhou will strive to consolidate its status as a central city of the nation. In addition to transformation, optimization and upgrading, the city will devote greater resources to the development of industrial clusters and concentrated regional development, science and education, innovation, and low-carbon eco-friendly growth. The city’s policy support and mechanism assurance will also be boosted.

Wu said that Guangzhou will continue to spearhead institutional innovation, enhance its policy system, and build mechanisms and systems to facilitate the development of the industries and the transformation of the means of economic growth.

China Watch Blog has learnt that a total of 177 corrupt officials were sacked during last year’s crackdown on mafia-style gangs in this southwestern municipality, a senior prosecutor said.

Among the officials punished in 2010, 87 were from local judicial departments, who were found to be providing protective umbrellas for, or receiving benefits from, the crime rings, Prosecutor-General of the municipality’s high procuratorate Yu Min told the local people’s congress.

The firings show the city’s determination to eliminate corruption and organized crime, China Daily reported, citing experts.

A total of 920 people were arrested and 1,335 others were prosecuted last year for involvement with 46 criminal rings, Yu said, adding that the gangs’ power had spread throughout various sectors, including construction, entertainment and transport.

Chongqing Higher People’s Court President Qian Feng said 761 people were convicted in 65 cases related to organized crime. The figures respectively jumped by 118 percent and 140 percent over 2009, when the crackdown began.

None of the death sentences, which were sent to the Supreme People’s Court in Beijing for examination as required, were rejected or ordered to undergo retrials, Qian said.

The crackdown stunned the nation. Former municipal bureau of justice chief Wen Qiang was sentenced to death for crimes that included protecting several gangs, while Beijing lawyer Li Zhuang received prison terms for fabricating evidence to save a gang boss.

“Chongqing’s legal proceedings are largely rigorous and fair. But the procedures for lawyers meeting suspects need to be standardized citywide,” local political consultative conference member Yi Chao said.

“In certain areas, such as Jiulongpo district, lawyers are not allowed to visit suspects without the officials handling the case present,” Yi continued.

“Some authorities do not comply with the rule that lawyers can meet suspects within 48 hours after initial detentions. Some lawyers can’t meet their clients after two months of detention.”

Vice-President Xi Jinping and Minister of Public Security Meng Jianzhu praised Chongqing’s cleanup of crime rings during their visits in 2010.

The Ministry of Public Security also listed crackdowns on the growing problem of organized crime as a primary component of its 2010 “intensive crackdown” campaign.

China Watch Blog has learnt that luxury-brand awareness is growing among China’s super rich, who recognize 20 percent more of the lavish brands than they did last year.

According to the Hurun Report, released on Tuesday, the 2011 Best of The Best Survey, which interviewed 401 Chinese mainland millionaires, each with assets of more than 10 million yuan (US$1.5 million), said the super rich in China are developing more sophisticated tastes in luxury products.

“Chinese entrepreneurs are getting more and more sophisticated, discerning and confident in their personal style, and what they aspire to, as they try to turn new money into old money,” Rupert Hoogewerf, founder of the Hurun Report, was quoted as saying by the China Daily.

“The time for China to learn from Europe is over. People here are becoming better educated. They are getting to know luxury brands that are not even familiar to some Europeans,” Hoogewerf said.

According to the 2010 Hurun Wealth Report, released in April, there are 875,000 multimillionaires and 55,000 billionaires in China, or 6.1 percent more millionaires and 7.8 percent more billionaires than last year.

This year, Louis Vuitton was again No 1 in the top ten overall most popular luxury brands among China’s super rich. Hermes rose to second place from fourth last year, and Chanel stayed in third place. Cartier was fourth and Gucci remained in fifth.

Cartier was the No 1 overall jewelry brand for the sixth year running, and Patek Philippe the leading luxury watch brand for the third time.