CHInA
CHInA
CoMPARED to tHE REVIsIon of tHE PAtEnt LAW,
PRoGREss on tRADEMARKs HAs BEEn MUCH sLoWER
Other revisions incorporated in the new law include strengthening the (CTMO) aims to shorten the examination time to 12 months in 2010.
enforcement system and new provisions on compulsory licensing, Bolar
Th ere were also discussions during the year about resuming the trademark
exceptions and others.
agent qualifying examination. Since 2001, the trademark system has suff ered
It is interesting that the SIPO began implementing some of the draft from the abolishment of the qualifying examination. Resumption seems to
provisions, such as the requirement for a brief description in design be inevitable.
applications, disclosure of genetic resources and security examination,
before the new Implementing Regulations came into eff ect, simply because
Leading cases
it would not work otherwise.
Pfi zer’s Viagra patent litigation fi nally ended in 2009. On May 31, 2009, the
Patent Re-examination Board (PRB) held that the patent was valid. Th e
third Amendment: trademarks
appeal period had expired, meaning that the PRB’s decision was fi nal. Th is
Th e Th ird Amendment to the Trademark Law has been in development for decision was made almost one year aft er the oral hearing in the case.
years. Many draft versions have been made available to the public. However,
Th e Viagra litigation lasted several years. Th e proceedings at the PRB were
compared to the revision of the Patent Law, progress on trademarks has been
part of the second round of litigation. In the fi rst round, 13 Chinese generic
much slower. Th is is partially due to the fact that the Chinese Trademark
companies attacked the validity of the Viagra patent at the PRB in order to
Law is less compatible with other major jurisdictions than the Patent Law. It
apply for the FDA’s approval to produce generic versions of Viagra. Th en the
is thought that the Th ird Amendment will increase compatibility.
PRB’s decision at the time determined that Pfi zer’s Viagra patent was invalid
On a positive note, in 2009, the prosecution time for trademark applications based on insuffi ciency. But this decision was overturned at the Beijing No.1
was reduced from three years to 19 months. Th e Chinese Trademark Offi ce Intermediate Court and again at the Beijing Higher People’s Court. Th e case
52 World Intellectual Property Review Digest 2009 www.worldipreview.com
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