On February 5, 2022, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) announced that China joined the Hague System for the International Registration of Industrial Designs effective May 5, 2022. The Government of China deposited its instrument of accession to the 1999 Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement on February 5, 2022. China is the 68th contracting party to the 1999 Act and 77th member of the Hague Union. The Hague System eliminates the need to file separate and multiple applications in individual countries …
Category: Design Patent
Shanghai Intellectual Property Court Announces its First GUI Design Patent Infringement Judgment
On June 21, 2021, the Shanghai Intellectual Property Court rendered the first-instance judgment on the Court’s first case of design patent infringement involving a graphical user interface (GUI), holding that the interface of the defendant Shanghai Zecao Co., Ltd.’s allegedly infringing Xiaobao APP for recruiting employees and the Xiaobao social media account was significantly different from the overall visual effect of the patent in question of the plaintiff, Dajiaying Company, and therefore dismissed all claims of the plaintiff. China began …
China Utility Model Patent Application Filings Up 29% in 2020; Foreign-Originated Chinese Invention Patent Application Filings Down 3%
In the newly released China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) 2020 Annual Report (国家知识产权局2020年度报告) the number of invention patent applications filed in China in 2020 was 1.497 million, a year-on-year increase of 6.9%. Among them, there were 1.345 million domestic invention patent applications filed, accounting for 89.8% of the total, a year-on-year increase of 8.1%; there were 152,000 foreign invention patent applications filed in China, accounting for 10.2% of the total, a year-on-year decrease of 3.0%. Note China had ceased …
China’s National Intellectual Property Administration Releases Top Ten Cases of Patent Reexamination for 2020
On April 26, 2021, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released the Top Ten Cases of Patent Reexamination for 2020 (2020年度专利复审无效十大案件发布). The cases cover a variety of technologies including pharmaceuticals, wireless communications, business methods, and more. Multiple foreign companies’ patents were challenged including Bayer, Sharp, and others. Brief summaries with links to the patents and decisions follow.