ABSTRACT

Nowadays, intangible assets feature prominently in the balance sheets of many companies, and intellectual property rights comprise a substantial portion of intangible assets. For that reason, it is imperative for businesses to understand intellectual property rights and to adopt appropriate measures to protect their intellectual property. In fact, intellectual property protection has been a major issue during bilateral or multilateral trade negotiations between China and other countries. This chapter is designed to provide an overview of the Chinese regulatory framework of intellectual property. Since patent, trademark, and copyright are the so-called “three pillars of intellectual property,” the discussion here focuses on these three areas of intellectual property law. Nonetheless, as the protection of trade secrets has been gaining attention, trade secrets will also be mentioned at the end of the chapter.