Intellectual Property and Technology Standards in China

Foreword

41 FOREWORD S ince China acceded to the World Trade Organization in 2001, China’s intellectual property rights (IPR) landscape has become an increasingly complex, multifaceted, and contentious environment. With improved legal protections for rights holders and expansions to its anti-counterfeiting campaigns, China has encouraged the rise of new stakeholders who are vocal about protecting their work and contributing to the global discourse on IPR. Yet despite this progress, many observers continue to raise questions about the seriousness—and ultimate direction—of the Chinese government’s efforts. Multinational companies have significant concerns regarding the country’s commitment to enforcing IPR protections. The release of government procurement catalogues and other government actions based on the nation’s policy of indigenous innovation have also heightened foreign anxiety that China plans to develop domestic industries by unfairly protecting the development of homegrown champions and forcing technology transfers that undermine the rights of IP developers. Given the vital importance of these issues both to China’s continued development and to the future of the global economy, it is essential that greater attention be paid to parsing the nature of China’s evolving IP strategies. For over fifteen years, the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) has been at the forefront of researching and analyzing China’s IPR strategies and industrial policies. Building on a comprehensive network of experts, NBR brings together scholars, practitioners, and policymakers from the United States and China to provide insights into the debates surrounding China’s modernization efforts, including its technology standards policies, innovation efforts, and IP strategy. Through high-level briefings, conferences, workshops, and reports, NBR aims to inform the development of public policy on these issues in both countries. This report represents our most recent effort to connect interested stakeholders with timely and well-informed analysis. In this NBR Special Report, Richard P. Suttmeier and Xiangkui Yao offer an assessment of China’s evolving IP landscape. Drawing on their significant expertise concerning China’s science and technology policies, the authors outline the key factors that shape China’s IP policies and examine the relationship between China’s IP strategy and indigenous innovation policies. Suttmeier and Yao conclude with an outlook for the future and provide critical recommendations for U.S. policymakers, industry leaders, and other vested stakeholders in China. We are deeply grateful to these authors for their phenomenal contribution in the form of this report to this important debate. Their insights are certain to be vital reading for anyone interested in the state of IPR in China. Travis Tanner Director, Pyle Center for Northeast Asian Studies The National Bureau of Asian Research This page left intentionally blank. ...