China will promote IP intermediary agencies in the next five
years to play their full role in the fields of training, public
activities, academic exchanges or cooperation and industrial
self-discipline.
Relevant regulations and administration methods will be
completed so as to regulate and normalize services.
In the next five years, SIPO will pay more attention to
industrial associations and intermediary agencies, which will be
encouraged to develop extensive IP information services, academic
exchanges and cooperation, IP asset evaluation as well as
transferable business, and to function better in serving the
public.
Industrial associations and IPR intermediary organizations are
expected to do well in self-discipline and protecting their own
rights, dealing with IPR disputes through effective means; SIPO
will support them to expand their business in a legal way and
improve their services. Chinese patent agencies are expected to
grow to 800 or 1,000 in the next five years from the current level
of 600, and at least 100 will be able to deal with electronic
patent applications.
A high-level intermediary team will be set up good at hi-tech,
advanced in science and technology, law, foreign languages and
international practice in the IP field. SIPO will pay special
attention to training at least 2,000 patent agents with advanced
knowledge in computers, bio-engineering, mobile communications as
well as other advanced technologies, and lead them to switch their
attention to serving China's hi-tech projects.
The patent agency sector will be promoted to a much higher
position in both China and abroad in the 11th Five-Year Plan as a
result of big progress in management levels, more self-discipline
and more regulation. Meanwhile, more patent agents will become
patent lawyers by the end of 2010.
For realizing the aforementioned purposes, relevant policies
encouraging and aiding intermediary agencies will be developed,
concrete provisions about IP intermediary agencies and
consultancies will be promulgated so as to regulate intermediary
services and their market, upgrade their service quality and make
the rights and responsibilities of agents clear.
(SIPO.gov.cn April 21, 2007)