Changsha in Hunan province leads the way in IP protection

Changsha, the capital city of Hunan province, has been on the forefront of China's intellectual property rights protection, with all-in-one measures taken in judiciary, law enforcement and public service sector, which further optimize the business environment for innovative enterprises, and pushes forward high-quality development of local economy.

In 2018, the first judicial organ specialized in IP in Hunan province - Changsha intellectual property court - was set up on March 1. It deals with disputes on trademark, copyright, unfair competition, technical contracts and other cases related to IPR infringement.

With over a total of 6,000 trials annually, the court has tried 1,708 patent cases in three years after establishment, strengthening the protection of technological achievements in core technologies and frontier fields.

Changsha, the engineering hub in central China, and home to global giants of heavy machinery industry, such as SANY Group, Sunward Group and Zoomlion, requires a higher standard of IPR protection in fields of unmanned driving, intelligent terminal and smart manufacturing.

To crack down on trademark infringements such as counterfeiting, stealing and imitation, 3,982 cases on branding disputes have been handled via IPR court since 2018.

Besides, it also attaches great importance of copyrights on TV programs, unfair competition and monopoly, in a move to create an open market environment based on order and standardization.

"We give equal protection to the innovation achievements of enterprises, whether they are state-owned or privately-managed, whether they are from home or abroad," said Zhang He, chief judge of Changsha intellectual property court.