Intellectual Property Rights: China steps up IPR protection, efforts recognized

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China says it has stepped up protection of intellectual property rights over the past ten years and says those efforts are being recognized both at home and abroad.

A national, full-blown special operation to make sure foreign businesses have their IP rights protected here in China. Starting late 2017. Impressive, but only one from a long list of such Chinese efforts in the last ten years.

US chip maker Qualcomm is the No.1 overseas owner of Chinese patents in 2017. It says the decade of IPR protection improvement could explain its growing investment in China.

And votes of confidence come from big and smaller players alike.

WILLIAM MANSFIELD DIRECTOR OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, ABRO INDUSTRIES "My company has successfully enforced our IPR rights at all levels in China for the past ten years in courts, disputes etc. And I compared IPR systems in many countries. China is one of the best."

Experts say that's part and parcel of China's own shift to a new, innovative economy.

WANG CHANGLIN, DEPUTY DIRECTOR ACADEMY OF MACROECONOMIC RESEARCH INST., NDRC "Many overseas companies now actively choose China as the place to settle IPR disputes, that, among other progress in recent years says what China's IPR environment is really like."

SUN YE BEIJING "China paid more than 28 billion USD on intellectual property royalties to overseas rights owners in 2017. In 2001, it was not even 2 billion USD. And that's another pair of figures often cited to show China's resolve to respect and protect intellectual property rights."

Coming from the country's top leadership, China has repeatedly pledged "zero-tolerance" on forced technology transfers.

LI KEQIANG CHINESE PREMIER "We will not allow forced technology transfer in the manufacturing sector or other areas. We're resolute in protecting intellectual property rights and will NOT allow infringements on the parts of overseas enterprises investing in China."

And Premier Li stressed that position again in a recent forum, promising a fair playing ground and growth for all companies in China. Sun Ye, CGTN, Beijing.