The EU-China Business Association, the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce and the China IPR SME Helpdesk organized a webinar focused on “IP Protection at Online Trade Fairs” on 29 July 2020. IP Business Advisor Matias Zubimendi gave a presentation on a successful IP strategy when attending online trade fairs. The webinar ended with a Q&A session where attendees raised their questions and interacted with the speakers.

Moderator Ms Helika Jurgenson, Project Manager, China IPR SME Helpdesk, welcomed the participants and introduced the webinar. Ms Jennifer Cao, Project Officer at the China IPR SME Helpdesk, gave a brief introduction of the Helpdesk. Next, Ms Gwenn Sonck, Executive Director of the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce and the EU-China Business Association introduced both organizations.

According to a short survey, 14% of the participants to the webinar had participated in online trade fairs, while 45% hadn’t. Another 36% said they hadn’t participated in any online trade fairs, but planned to and 5% of the participants responded they wouldn’t participate because it was too complicated. Ms Jurgenson said it was really good that 14% had already participated in online trade fairs since those fairs had only been held in the past three months.

Mr Matias Zubimendi, IP Business Advisor at the Helpdesk, explained how to safely attend online trade fairs. There are five main intellectual property rights: innovation patents & utility models; design patents; trademarks; copyrights and trade secrets. The main principles are registration and territoriality. In China, IPRs that are not registered have almost no protection at all. The company or person that made the first registration has priority over all future registrations. The IPR is limited to the country were the registration was done. For example, a trademark registered in Europe will not have any effect in China, unless it is also registered in China. When participating in a trade fair we should know in which country this is happening. We have to plan in advance to have protection in this country. In the case of an online trade fair, this becomes a little more complex because we have to discuss where online trade fairs take place.

What is the difference between regular and online trade fairs? I personally attended already four online trade fairs. You have a list of exhibitors and you can also look for specific products. You will see information of the company and be able to make a purchase, to ask further information about the product, or request a meeting. During online trade fairs there are also regular events, such as a welcoming ceremony, promotions of the place and of the companies, webinars, videos, and finally a goodbye ceremony. Online trade fairs allow exhibitors to give their own presentations. Just like regular trade fairs, online ones are match-making events, it is possible to make some contacts, but the format is not yet well developed. You can usually purchase a sample at online trade fairs and this is an opportunity to check the quality of the products as you will not see them like at a regular trade fair. A limitation is that there is no real contact with the company. Participation in an online trade fair is cheaper and in case of IPR infringement it will be easier to obtain evidence.

Where do online trade fairs take place? There is a debate about the jurisdiction of websites. Which law is going to be applicable and will my trademark registered in the EU be enforceable in the online trade fair? During the duration of the trade fair you will not be able to discuss complex topics. We can say that the online trade fair will be happening in China and Chinese law will be applicable. But you also have to take into consideration that both regular and online trade fairs have their own rules and procedures for complaints of IPR infringement.

In which country should I protect my IP? If the trade fair is happening online you have to protect your IP in the country of the organizers, in our case China, so it is best to register your IP in that country. What are the main risks of participating in a trade fair? What are the potential dangers to my IPRs? In the case of patents, the main danger is to lose the requirement of novelty. Novelty has to be global and is going to be checked during the registration process. Any disclosure may invalidate future protection. Your company will have to pay special attention when participating in a trade fair and deciding what kind of products or designs will be exposed, because they should already be registered before disclosure. In the case of China there is an exception in the case of patents. If the online trade fair is an international exhibition sponsored or recognized by the Chinese government, there is a grace period of six months for making the registration. By disclosure we mean that the product or design should not be made available to the public, so if you upload a picture to the online trade fair and everybody can have access to it, there is disclosure and loss of novelty. If your specific technology is located inside the product, there won’t be any problem, because nobody will be able to know anything about this new technology just by looking at the picture. If I am an exhibitor and somebody asks for a private meeting because he is interested in buying my product, can I show more to that person? I would say no, but if it is an important client, you could disclose a little bit more of information by covering yourself with a non-disclosure agreement. In this case you are treating the patent as a trade secret because it has not been registered yet. However you should not give non-disclosure agreements to everybody approaching you at the trade fair.

In the case of copyrights the main risk is to be copied. In an online trade fair this is less likely to happen. In the case of trademarks, the risk is also to be copied and somebody could register it to sell it to you later. Taking down a registration is not easy in China. You will have to go to court and the process will take more than a year. If you have a translation made of your trademark, check the characters to see if they communicate good values. If you launch a promotion in China with your Chinese name, your products may be known under that name in China and not under your original name. Therefore, register both trademarks. Your Chinese name will be more important than your original name. Finally, trade secrets get lost once they become public. The general rule is do not take any sensitive information to a trade fair and in the case of an online trade fair, do not upload any sensitive information. When deciding which information to upload, double-check to make sure that no trade secret is to be lost. Your negotiator at the trade fair should also be aware of this. Trade fairs are very important events in China, so it is advisable to include China in the countries where your patent is protected.

What to do before the trade fair? Register your IPR as soon as possible, no registration means no protection. Prepare your team; decide who will participate and assign them roles; who is going to be the negotiator or seller; teach them how to use NDA; assign some people to control other exhibitors and events; teach them how to collect evidence and how to enforce your IPRs by contacting the complaints center.

How to proceed if I detect an IP infringement? First collects all the evidence. The most efficient way is through a notary. Blockchain is another method, you can protect your information with blockchain and it will not be modified at all. Another method is obtaining samples online with the assistance of the notary. You can get company information through the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System. It is also advisable to contact your local Chinese attorney. During the trade fair you can go to the complaints centers. Compared to the local courts, they are faster and more effective, and they will immediately remove any infringing offer. But the disadvantage is that you will not get compensation and the seller will continue operating and at the end of the day you will not be solving the real problem. You can first go to the complaints center to remove the infringing products from the trade fair and then go to the local courts. In the case of online copyright infringement, you can go to the internet courts of China. They are really fast and the hearings all take place online. The hearings on average take 28 minutes and the whole procedure 25 days. This only works for copyright infringement, not for trademarks. In China, many bad faith sellers are registering trademarks as copyright. So you can make a copyright of your trademark and go to the internet courts.

What to do after the trade fair if you encounter an infringement? Register your IP rights with the Customs office, avoiding that they export the products abroad. Continue to research the infringing participant and e-commerce sites to check if they continue to sell online. Finally, you can use cease and desist letters and go to the courts.

Take-away messages: register your IP in advance; do not disclose your trade secrets; get familiar with the IP complaint rules and procedure; have your legal team ready to act; collect evidence before starting any action; collect as much evidence as possible; and keep an eye on the infringers. You can contact the China IPR SME Helpdesk at question@china-iprhelpdesk.eu.

Q&A session: How long does it take on average to deposit a trademark and how much does it cost? The average time is eight months to a year if there is no opposition. The fee is CNY300 or about €37. Do the internet courts conduct a substantial examination? There is a comprehensive analysis, the fact that everything happens online does not mean that the procedure is less strict. You should be able to explain everything. What risks could be associated by uploading your product information to a virtual exhibition? If you only provide simple information about your products, there won’t be any risks. The most important part to take into consideration is that you don’t disclose any characteristics of your technology that can be part of a future patent.