Representatives from the private sector yesterday called on the government to squarely face and address problems stemming from the serious infringement of trademarks and patent rights by Chinese companies.
The local businessmen made the call at a hearing organized by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ting Shou-chung (丁守中) on the signing of a cross-Taiwan Strait accord on intellectual property rights. Government officials and academics also attended the hearing to answer questions and make suggestions.
A Shihlin Electric & Engineering Corp (士林電機) executive said his company’s trademark, which is registered in both Taiwan and China, has been appearing on products in China since 2000 without Shihlin Electric’s consent.
Lin Chih-cheng (林志誠) said his company filed several complaints with Chinese authorities about the trademark infringement, but it took three to four years before a ruling was obtained.
“Some complaints were not even heard,” he said.
Chu Juo-yu (朱若昱), a legal affairs manager at the food company Hsin Tung Yang Co (新東陽), said it was a long, tiring process to obtain a ruling in China on intellectual property rights violations.
“It should be easier for legal authorities in China to establish the ownership of patent rights now that cross-strait exchanges have improved and expanded,” Chu said.
Responding to the businessmen’s concerns, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Sheng-chung (林聖忠) said the intellectual property rights issue would be put on the agenda of the next round of cross-strait talks.
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