THE TOOLS FOR THE FIGHT AGAINST COUNTERFEITING AND THE PROTECTION OF PATENTS IN CHINA. THE COMPROMEC-YIAO CASE STUDY

Abstract

During the 21st century, China abandoned its marginal position within the world scenario, transforming its role from a secondary country into a leading country, to the point that it has undoubtedly become the largest economic power in the world. Furthermore, the high growth rates recorded by China in the new millennium indicate that the economic miracle continues even now and does not seem to stop. However, if on the one hand this economic miracle has elevated the country raising it to the level of Western powers up to surpassing them, on the other hand it hides dark sides that can lead to highly destabilizing problems. Among these is counterfeiting, which represents one of the daily realities present in China. The production of low-priced products has led China to be considered the place of origin of counterfeiting, making this phenomenon a global problem with complications on multiple levels. As a matter of fact, recent estimates by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) reveal that nearly 90% of all seized counterfeit goods originate from China as a result of the high consumer demand for fake products. As a consequence of this, Chinese markets are considered the leaders of counterfeiting and now seem intrusive to the point that protecting one's patents is increasingly difficult, especially in a Europe that presents itself as the privileged channel for illegally produced goods. Consequently, this paper, by means of a comprehensive overview on the phenomenon of counterfeiting in China and on the protection of the patent through the analysis of a case study, aims to understand the evolution of this event and which measures have been and can be adopted by the Chinese government to counter and to fight it. Therefore, the activities of the competent authorities, the economic implications and the legal profiles are analyzed in depth. In particular, the first section provides an overview of the phenomenology of counterfeiting in China, without neglecting causes, effects and regulatory sources. It also analyzes the effects that China's opening up to international trade and its participation in the WTO have had on the protection of intellectual property rights, in particular the patent for invention and technology. After providing data on the quantification of the phenomenon and its limits, the second section deals with the regulatory framework for the prevention and repression of the phenomenon, offering an overview of the administrations involved in the fight against counterfeiting. Attention is paid to the awareness that acting in a preventive manner can limit the damage as much as possible and, through the inclusion of safety policies to be integrated into the production and manufacturing system, it would be possible to stem this phenomenon in advance. Finally, the last section analyzes the case study concerning infringement of patents for inventions, through an in-depth analysis of the matter, of the solutions adopted in relation to legal actions and resolution of the case. Through this episode, the effects and consequences of counterfeiting on the bilateral relationship between Italy and China and the impacts and damages of counterfeiting on the market will be examined.