China Copyright Law: It Pays to Register
If you truly want to protect your content in China, register your copyright in China
Must I Register My Company Name as a Trademark in China?
No two China trademark strategies are the same, but one thing is pretty much a constant: You should register the company's original English name. Before we go on, a clarification: I use "English name" as shorthand, but these names are often in other languages, or simply be a random collection of Latin letters. Names in
Cease and Desist Letters to Stop International Counterfeiting
Hardly a week goes by without a company contacting one of our international IP lawyers wanting to retain us to "stop the counterfeits" of their products online and offline. Far too often these people believe one of our IP lawyers can within 24 hours send out a "template" cease and desist letter and within another 24
The Problem with Online Trademark Services for China
The Problem with Online Trademark Services for China Once or twice a month, my law firm's international trademark lawyers are contacted by companies whose China trademark registrations were mishandled by online trademark services. In all instances, the registration problems stem from online services claiming they can register trademarks globally, including in China. These claims are
China Trademarks: Register via Madrid or in China?
The Madrid Protocol can simplify a large international trademark portfolio, but China’s subclass system, five-year dependency rule, short refusal deadlines, and enforcement procedures create added risks. For companies that manufacture, sell, or enforce their trademarks in China, a direct CNIPA filing is usually the better choice.
China Distribution Contracts: The Basics
China Distribution Contracts: Same-Same but Different Ever since COVID, our China lawyers have been seeing a big increase in foreign companies entering into distribution contracts with Chinese distributors, due mostly to the difficulties and risks foreign companies face when they go into China directly. Many of the companies that come to us to draft their
How To Stop China-Based Domain Name Theft
A China-based cybersquatter has registered a domain that copies your trademark or diverts your customers. Learn when to use the UDRP, China’s separate `.cn` dispute process, a demand letter, or litigation to recover the domain and stop the misuse.
Giving Your IP to China Out of Love
One of our China IP lawyers tends towards sarcasm, and in cleaning out my email stack I found this email: Another company that loves China so much that they have already given all their IP to a Chinese company with nothing in return. American and European companies seem not to realize that if they teach
Reduce Your Counterfeit Risks by Recording Your Trademark With China Customs
As we have written a number of times, the essential first step in any China IP strategy is to register your trademarks with China's Trademark Office. Because China is a first-to-file country, until you register a trademark in China you have no rights in that trademark in China. But a trademark registration alone goes only