Public Solicitation of Opinions on the Regulations for the Protection of Geographical Indications
On September 24, the State Intellectual Property Office released a draft of the "Regulations on the Protection of Geographical Indications (Draft for Comments)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Draft for Comments") and its explanatory notes, soliciting opinions from all sectors of society. The Draft for Comments revises the current "Regulations on the Protection of Geographical Indication Products," aiming to effectively protect geographical indications and ensure the quality and characteristics of geographical indication products.
The Draft for Comments stipulates that any unit or individual who uses product names or descriptions to mislead the public about the product's origin, or who uses a geographical indication special mark (hereinafter referred to as the "special mark") or a similar mark without authorization, leading to public misunderstanding, will be dealt with in accordance with the "Product Quality Law of the People's Republic of China"; using the name of a protected geographical indication product on the same or similar products outside the production area constitutes infringement, and will be stopped and fined by the market supervision and administration department.
Meanwhile, the Draft for Comments clarifies the rights and obligations of multiple parties. The applicant for a geographical indication is a producer association or protection application institution designated by the county-level or above people's government. After a geographical indication is protected, the applicant should take measures to manage the use of the geographical indication product name and special mark, as well as the product's quality and characteristics. Geographical indication product producers have the right to use the geographical indication product name and special mark and should organize production in accordance with relevant standards or management regulations. In addition to the applicant and producers bearing corresponding obligations, the local people's government where the production area is located should establish and implement a product standard system, testing system, and quality assurance system for protected geographical indications; the local intellectual property management department should conduct daily supervision of the quality characteristics and standard compliance of protected geographical indication products within its administrative region.
It is understood that the current "Regulations on the Protection of Geographical Indication Products" were formulated and implemented by the former State Administration of Quality Supervision in 2005. The supporting normative document, "Measures for the Protection of Foreign Geographical Indication Products," was issued in 2016 and revised in 2019. The above-mentioned regulations and normative documents have played an important role in effectively protecting geographical indication products and promoting local economic development. By the end of June 2020, a total of 2,385 geographical indication products had been approved, and 8,811 enterprises had been approved to use special marks. (Reporter Wu Ke)
(Source: China Intellectual Property News)
