Roundtable 2022 with Government Officials

March 28, 2022

On March 23, the WIPO Office in China (WOC) held the Roundtable 2022 with government officials in Beijing. Representatives from the Foreign Affairs Committee of National People's Congress, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, General Administration of Customs, State Administration for Market Regulation, Cyberspace Administration of China, China National Intellectual Property Administration and the Boao Forum for Asia were invited to the Roundtable.

Liu Hua, Director of WIPO Office in China (WOC), began by introducing the vision and mission of WIPO and its global IP service and products to the participants. WIPO aims to lead the development of a balanced and effective global IP ecosystem that promotes innovation and creativity, thereby fostering social progress, economic development and cultural exchanges. WIPO is often referred as a golden knowledge asset, to which WIPO provides five set of golden keys including WIPO's policy forum, application systems, databases, cooperation platforms and the capacity building platform.

Liu Hua focused on the policy coordination platform, and mentioned that WIPO manages 26 international IP treaties covering patents, trademarks, copyrights, industrial designs and geographical indications. At the same time, WIPO has recently been involved in the development of new areas related to artificial intelligence, blockchain, big data, cloud computing, bringing together technology owners, seekers and policy makers in related fields to address the evolving situation and prepare for the new rules and regulation.

Liu Hua said the current international development trends and movements will have a profound impact on the construction of the future IP ecosystem. First, the centenary changes. The globalization, moving forward defying difficulties, will lead to new thinking on the investment and distribution of IP, globally and locally. The shift to Asia of the world innovation activities will be inevitably reflected in the global IP system. Second, the Pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the global economy and society hard, with many traditional industries suffering setbacks, but global investment in innovation remains strong and resilient, and global IP filings continue to grow.

Innovation and creation have driven the development of new industries such as distance learning, mobile payments, biotechnology and biopharmaceuticals. Third, digital divide from evolving communication and information technology. The new wave of technological revolution represented by digitalization process has emerged, but the digital divide and innovation divide still exist on a global scale. WIPO will strive to build a balanced, inclusive, vibrant and forward-looking global IP ecosystem, with a focus on helping SMEs, women and youth to benefit from the effective use of IP. Fourth, cross-border trade disputes. In response to the cross-border disputes over IP resulting from cross-border trade in goods and services, WIPO provides an alternative dispute resolution mechanism.

Liu Hua introduced the work priorities of the WOC in 2022, emphasizing the WIPO Medium-Term Strategic Plan (MTSP) 2022-2026 which was adopted by the WIPO General Assembly of Member States in September 2021. The MTSP outlines WIPO's strategic direction for the next five years and the core elements of it are represented by a Strategy House which was put forward by the Director General Mr. Daren Tang. According to the MTSP, the vision of WIPO is to help create a world where innovation and creativity from anywhere is supported by IP for the good of everyone. To this end, Ms. Liu said that WIPO and WOC will continue to adhere to the people-oriented approach, tell the good Chinese IP stories, select outstanding IP cases by closely connecting the media, the market and major Chinese stakeholders, including government, academia, business and the public, to raise their awareness of IP, and reach out to new technologies, new champions of emerging industry and the new generation, with a focus on SMEs, women and youth. WIPO will further strengthen its relationship with the Chinese government and various stakeholders to develop long-term mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation; utilize new technological tools to continuously improve its services in China; and support the Chinese government, enterprises, communities and individuals to effectively use IP to enhance business value, attract investment, create jobs, improve business competitiveness, and ultimately to promote economic growth and achieve sustainable development.

Voices of Participants

The participants introduced their respective departments' IP work and cooperation with WIPO, exchanged views on the status of current IP protection and international cooperation, and made suggestions on how to further strengthen cooperation with WIPO. They expressed their pleasure to participate in and promote the close cooperation between China and WIPO in the field of IP. In recent years, especially since the establishment of the WOC, the cooperation between China and WIPO has become more and more extensive, in-depth and effective, and has achieved fruitful results.

WIPO's engagement with all sectors in China is comprehensive, not only at the government level, but also with all stakeholders in government, academia, business and the public, and the breadth and depth of cooperation in recent years is also unprecedented. WIPO Director General Daren Tang was invited to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Winter Games earlier this year, met with Premier Li Keqiang, and received China's instruments of ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty and accession to the Hague Agreement, making the cooperation between the two sides fruitful and mutually beneficial, which is a significant milestone for cooperation between the two sides. China has attached importance upon science and technology innovation and paid great attention to the Global Innovation Index (GII), which has been regarded as an important reference indicator for the construction of an innovative country in China.

The participants believed that the Roundtable organized by WOC provided a very good platform for communication and further understanding of WIPO and its global IPR protection and service system and strategic development direction. They hoped to further deepen and close cooperation with WIPO, share China's experience with the international community through the WIPO platform, encourage Chinese judicial institutions and enterprises to participate in international rule-making, and help SMEs enhance their awareness and ability of IP protection and reduce the risk of encountering overseas IP disputes. They expressed that they would make good use of WIPO's services, products and resources, support the work of WOC, and support WIPO in realizing the vision of establishing a balanced, effective IP ecosystem as proposed by Director General Daren Tang in the midst of a century of great changes.