Intellectual Property Newsletter by MeritsIP, August 20, 2025

Intellectual Property Newsletter by MeritsIP, August 20, 2025

August 20, 2025 global, meritsip 0 Comments

Editor’s Note: Intellectual Property Highlights and Strategies for Innovation

Welcome to the MeritsIP Newsletter. We delve into critical updates in the intellectual property landscape, providing insights and strategies to help you navigate the ever-evolving world of patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Read on to stay informed and ahead in the game of innovation.

Tianjin Binhai New Area Intellectual Property Office Accelerates Patent Industrialization in the Biomedical Industry

Recently, the Intellectual Property Office of Tianjin Binhai New Area held the 7th “One Chain per Month” patent industrialization promotion event for the biomedical industry, featuring three – service and three – handling characteristics. It served key parks by collaborating with multiple parties, with over 80 representatives discussing cross – regional cooperation at Tiankai High – tech and Education Innovation Park. For key industries, it introduced industry development, policies, and support. Key entities like universities and enterprises presented over 10 patent technologies, and a biomedical patent library with nearly 1,700 patents was released. Financial institutions promoted 8 intellectual property financial products. Since this year, the 7 events have involved over 150 enterprises, promoted 11 policy documents, and released over 4,800 transferable patents. They also facilitated insurance contracts and established industry alliances. In the future, Binhai New Area will better match patent technologies with market needs to promote the biomedical industry.

Decisive Battle in the 14th Five-Year Plan: Beijing’s High-Value Invention Patents per 10,000 Population Reach 171.8

As of June 2025, Beijing’s high – value invention patents per 10,000 population hit 171.8, leading the nation. This showcases the remarkable achievements of Beijing’s IP work since the 14th Five – Year Plan. Beijing optimized IP policies, issued relevant outlines and regulations to improve the business environment. In high – quality creation, it ranked third globally in science and technology clusters in 2024, with 695,000 effective invention patents by June 2025. The IP protection center served many enterprises. For high – efficiency utilization, it inventoried patents and built a transformation library. In high – level protection, a two – level adjudication system was set up, and the mediation mechanism was effective. High – standard services included a multi – level public service system. The “double 60%” reflects the strengthening of enterprises’ innovation and IP structure optimization. Beijing’s IP system will keep contributing to the international science and technology innovation center and the “Two Zones” in the 15th Five – Year Plan.

CSC Interpretation | ICANN Releases Draft of the Applicant Guidebook, Learn the New Changes in the Second Round of Domain Name Applications!

On May 30, 2025, ICANN released a 395 – page draft of the Applicant Guidebook for the second – round new gTLD program and sought public comments. The draft integrates first – round experience and covers application – related aspects.

Key differences in the second – round application include: raised application fees and specific refund rules; specific requirements for gTLD strings and the option to include replacement strings; a new priority review lottery; brand string change requests under certain conditions; and a ban on private settlement of competition combinations.

The public comment period ended in July 2025. ICANN will summarize reports by end – August. The final AGB must be approved and announced by December 31, 2025, for the application window to open in April 2026. ICANN also released proposed amendments to define DNS abuse.

Import and Export Trade: Compliance Use of Green Dot Trademark and Prevention of Infringement Risks

In 2025, stricter EU environmental regulations led to a significant rise in intellectual property disputes related to the Green Dot trademark among Chinese import – export enterprises. This article analyzes the trademark’s meaning, usage significance, and legal usage paths, and proposes anti – infringement strategies and risk – prevention measures.

The Green Dot trademark, a registered trademark of DSD protected in over 170 countries and regions, is a financing identifier for EPR with strict geographical usage restrictions. Export enterprises apply for it as it’s an EU market access requirement, affects consumer decisions, and helps with brand premium.

To use it legally, enterprises need to get authorization based on the sales market, follow technical specifications, and fulfill reporting obligations. When facing infringement complaints, they can verify authorization, provide legal source evidence, and correct non – compliant usage.

For risk prevention, enterprises should conduct pre – export verifications, review supply – chain trademark compliance, offer full – chain training, and establish customs filings. With stricter EU packaging regulations, they should check existing packaging compliance, integrate IP reviews into product development, and plan IP in target markets in advance.

Contract Dispute: Gongniu’s Channel Control Upheld by Ningbo Court

This is a contract dispute between Lishui Xiangcai Trading Co., Ltd., Sun Moumou (appellants) and Ningbo Gongniu Marketing Co., Ltd. (appellee). Xiangcai and Sun claimed the “Distribution Contract” was invalid for violating the Anti – Monopoly Law but provided insufficient evidence. According to judicial interpretations, a contract’s provisions on prohibiting cross – regional sales violating laws don’t necessarily make the contract invalid. If they think Gongniu violated the law, they can claim separately. The first – instance court’s decision that Xiangcai was in breach and should bear liability was appropriate.

The first – instance court properly accepted Gongniu’s evidence, which formed a complete chain. The Cixi court ordered Xiangcai to pay 292,000 yuan in penalties and Sun to bear joint liability. On August 8, 2025, the Ningbo Intermediate People’s Court (second – instance court) dismissed the appeal and upheld the original judgment.

Gansu’s Wuwei City Adds 14 “Ganwei” Enterprise Trademark Brands

Recently, the Gansu Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs announced the fifth – batch “Ganwei” agricultural product brand recognition results. Fourteen enterprise trademark brands in Wuwei City, including “Yilongtian” cherry tomatoes and “Baixiaomou” white yak beef, were included in the “Ganwei Agricultural Product Brand Catalog”. Six new agricultural product categories were added to brands like Minqingyuan and Huangyanghe.

This year, the Wuwei Agricultural and Rural Bureau strictly implemented regulations, seized the brand – recognition opportunity, and optimized the brand cultivation system. It encouraged enterprise applications. Now, the city has 4 “Ganwei” regional public brands and 49 “Ganwei” enterprise trademark brands.

The bureau strengthened brand – driven agricultural development by enhancing quality – safety control, improving relevant systems, promoting green technologies, and building standardized production bases. It also advanced the “Market Expansion Year” work of the “Ganwei” brand in four key areas.

Guangxi Yulin Holds Promotion Event to Advance Trademark Brand Construction

Recently, Yulin City in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region held a 2025 promotion event on implementing the trademark brand strategy and using geographical indications for rural revitalization. The event aimed to speed up trademark brand construction, enhance their visibility, influence, and competitiveness, and invigorate characteristic industries with geographical indications.

Relevant experts interpreted topics like trademark use and protection, geographical indication regulations, regional brand building, and enterprise trademark layout. They also analyzed trademark – protection problems through intellectual property cases.

The “Yulin model” of “strengthening the city with trademarks” and “prospering agriculture with geographical indications” is taking shape. In the 2025 “China’s 500 Most Valuable Brands” list, “Yuchai” has been on it for 20 consecutive years with a brand value of 114.306 billion yuan. Geographical indication brands such as “Yulin Three – Yellow Chicken” also have high brand values. As of June this year, Yulin had 39,685 valid trademarks, 29 geographical indications, and 26 Madrid International Registered Trademarks.

Whether it is an infringement to set others’ registered trademarks as search keywords? Experts analyze the infringement judgment of the implicit use of search keywords

The article debates if setting others’ registered trademarks as search keywords is an infringement. In 2025, the revised Anti – Unfair Competition Law stated that using others’ trademarks as search keywords causing confusion is unfair competition. Infringement determination depends on whether it causes confusion and misrecognition. Implicit use, especially with “advertisement” signs, usually doesn’t cause confusion and offers consumers more choices.

When consumers are searching for information, a single search keyword rarely affects their final purchase decisions. For relevant legal clauses, the relationship between the general and typed clauses of the Anti – Unfair Competition Law is “connotation and extension”. The general clause defines unfair competition essentials, and the typed clause details specific behaviors. “Confusion and misrecognition” includes all general – clause elements. If a typed clause has partial elements, the general clause should be combined for evaluation. For novel behaviors not covered by typed clauses, the general clause should be used for review.

Reasonable Determination of the Scope of Cross – Class Protection for Well – Known Trademarks

This news article analyzes a trademark dispute case. An information company sued a fried dough stick company for trademark infringement and unfair competition, claiming its four trademarks were well – known as the latter used certain logos in its breakfast business. The Guangzhou Intellectual Property Court ruled that the fried dough stick company’s actions did not constitute infringement or unfair competition, considering factors like trademark dissimilarity, low association between goods and services, and lack of confusion or malicious intent.

The article further elaborates on well – known trademark protection principles, including high – quality and strict protection, good faith, and interest balance. When determining cross – class confusion, factors such as trademark use, similarity, distinctiveness, and confusion should be considered. For protection scope and dilution determination, the distinctiveness of the well – known trademark, the association between goods, and the “misleading the public” standard are crucial. Well – known trademarks need special protection, but the scope should be reasonably determined based on interest balance to avoid excessive restrictions and unfair competition.

First Metaverse Virtual Reality Trademark Case Awards 1 Million in Compensation

On July 21, 2025, the Hangzhou Intermediate People’s Court made a second – instance judgment in the “George Patton” trademark infringement and unfair competition case. It reversed the first – instance judgment, ruled the acts as trademark infringement and unfair competition, and awarded 1 million yuan in compensation. This is the first case to recognize virtual cars in games and real – world cars as similar goods. The court considered Qiao Bataifeng Company’s authorization to Tencent to implant the “George Patton” car in “Peace Elite” and use relevant trademarks. It held that despite different categories, there are cross – overs and overlaps between virtual and real cars in function, use, sales channels, and consumer groups. Qiao Bataifeng’s authorization and the game’s virtual cars’ similarity to real ones, along with brand – emphasized publicity, likely misled the public, thus constituting trademark infringement.

UK Ministry of Justice Releases AI Action Plan

On July 31, 2025, the UK Ministry of Justice released an AI action plan for justice. It claims that AI can boost the efficiency, fairness, and accessibility of the justice system, reduce court backlogs, improve prison capacity, rehabilitation effects, and victim services. The key points include AI’s application potential in automating tasks, optimizing resources, etc.; priorities such as strengthening AI construction via a working group, providing efficient services, and accelerating application through talent investment and partnerships; principles of prioritizing safety and fairness, ensuring judicial independence, etc.; and a delivery roadmap with promoting productivity tools and pilot projects in the first year (from April 2025), expanding successful programs in the second year, and delivering scalable cross – system solutions in the third year.

[Professional Knowledge] Belgian Patent Invalidation System

This text presents the Belgian patent invalidation system within the EU’s Unified Patent Court (UPC) context, characterized by regional decentralized jurisdiction and bilingual parallel procedures. It details the legal framework involving European and Belgian national patents, and key regulations. Belgium has a three – court system for invalidation, unlike the centralized one in The Hague, with the Brussels Court handling most cases. The judicial invalidation procedure requires a lawsuit in the court’s official language and a validity analysis report, taking 18 – 24 months and costing €30,000 – €80,000. Invalidation reasons are similar to the EPC, and the court can partially invalidate patents. The UPC’s impact includes traditional EPs coming under its jurisdiction and weakening local courts’ language advantage. Enterprises need to choose appropriate invalidation paths and control costs. The system’s advantages are professional judgment and the Brussels Court’s experience, while challenges are high costs, long cycles, and a weakened status as a litigation center after UPC implementation.

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