China sets up anti-counterfeiting alliance

BEIJING - A strategic alliance on infringement and counterfeiting eradication was set up in Beijing on Friday to further improve protection of intellectual property rights (IPR).

More than 100 members of the non-government China Anti-Infringement and Anti-Counterfeiting Innovation Strategic Alliance called for modernized data sharing, a social common management mechanism and a civilian monitoring system for IPR protection.

In the Internet era, IPR infringement needs a public service platform based on big data analysis and information sharing, said Hong Yunfeng, director of the alliance.

The organization is devoted to building a fair business environment and carving out a new image internationally for Chinese enterprises and products, he said.

Members of the alliance include companies like Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Inc., e-commerce giant Alibaba, universities and industry associations.

"With the popularity of our products, there are more and more counterfeit cellphones," said Liu Yanxia, anti-counterfeiting manager at Xiaomi Inc.

Liu said she hoped the alliance would protect the rights of companies with its resources.

Chinese authorities handled more than 110,000 cases of IPR infringement in the first three quarters of last year, according to the country's top office for nationwide operations against IPR infringement and counterfeiting.

This year will see special campaigns to crack down on IPR infringement and counterfeiting in the booming e-commerce sector as well as in rural areas where law enforcement is lax, said Chai Haitao, deputy head of the office.