Intellectual Property Newsletter by MeritsIP, August 29, 2025

Intellectual Property Newsletter by MeritsIP, August 29, 2025

August 29, 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.

Skynet is Merciless! China’s Customs Seize 1.83 Million Pieces of Allegedly Infringing Labubu Products This Year

On August 25th, at a press conference, Wang Jun, deputy director – general of the General Administration of Customs, said that since this year, China’s customs have intercepted 1.83 million allegedly infringing Labubu products, protecting a fair and healthy international trade environment. During the “14th Five – Year Plan”, China’s customs launched special actions like “Dragon Leap Action”, “Blue Net Action” in the postal channel, and “Clean Net Action” for export – transit goods, seizing nearly 400 million suspected infringing goods in 260,000 batches.

This year, customs in multiple regions cracked down on import – export intellectual property infringement. Guangzhou Customs seized 43,200 allegedly infringing Labubu toys; Ningbo Customs found 1,080 pieces of children’s clothing with unauthorized Labubu images. Shenzhen Customs and its subordinates also seized many related products. Other customs like Gongbei, Changsha Post Office, Nanning, Urumqi Tianshan Airport, and Hangzhou’s Qianjiang Customs also took action. Wang Jun stressed that China’s customs protect both domestic and foreign intellectual property rights, preventing the inflow and outflow of infringing products.

China’s AI Patents Account for 60% of Global Total

At a press conference themed “High – quality Completion of the 14th Five – Year Plan”, it was revealed that China has made breakthroughs in key digital core technologies. China’s AI patents account for 60% of the global total. After years of efforts, China has achieved remarkable results in the digital field. The integrated circuit industry has accelerated its layout with a complete industrial chain. The domestic operating system HarmonyOS is rising rapidly, with over 1.19 billion ecosystem devices serving as the “intelligent core” for over 1,200 product types. China’s overall AI strength has made a comprehensive leap. In the digital age, digital technology drives various industries. AI is developing rapidly, integrating with the real economy, and expanding application scenarios. In July, the added – value of intelligent unmanned aerial vehicle and vehicle – mounted device manufacturing increased by 80.8% and 21% respectively, and the output of industrial robots and civilian drones grew by 24% and 18.9% respectively.

Suggestions on the Judicial Application of the Foreseeability Rule

This article focuses on the foreseeability rule, a patent – infringement defense rule from US judicial practice to limit the doctrine of equivalents. Despite being discussed by China’s Supreme People’s Court over 20 years ago, it’s not in judicial interpretations but often used in Chinese judicial practice, causing inconsistent standards. There are disputes over its application. The Beijing High – Court supports using it to restrict equivalent infringement, while the academic community generally opposes it as it may be too harsh on patent – holders. In different countries’ judicial practices: In the US, its status has fluctuated in different cases. In Japan, the Supreme Court ruled that foreseeability at application time doesn’t prevent equivalent infringement judgment. In China, most Supreme People’s Court judgments are closer to other principles. The author suggests basing the understanding and application of the rule on the publicity principle of claims and party – autonomy principle. It’s a theoretical guiding principle rather than an operational one.

INTA Research | Report on “Anticounterfeiting and Return on Investment” Released!

Recently, the Global Policy Project Group of the INTA’s Anticounterfeiting Committee released the “Anticounterfeiting and Return on Investment” report. It serves as a comprehensive action guide for right – holders, quantifying the value of anti – counterfeiting work to help enterprises emphasize brand protection in their strategies. Counterfeiting harms brand value, supply chains, and consumer safety, and measuring anti – counterfeiting impact is challenging. The report provides practical guidance such as valuation methods and ROI calculation models. Key highlights include combining online and offline investigations, calculating “soft” and “hard” benefits, promoting cross – departmental collaboration, and regular reviews of ROI assessment. It is a valuable resource for brand protection professionals, legal teams, and managers, facilitating anti – counterfeiting strategies and driving business results.

Virtual Human Image Infringement: Court Rules Original Images Protected by Copyright Law

This news details a copyright infringement case of virtual human images. Virtual humans A and B were jointly produced by four entities, with Juomu as the copyright – holder and Yuanmu in charge of operation. Virtual human A has a large fan – base. The plaintiffs claim that Sun Moumou and Ximu Company infringed their rights by selling virtual human models on a website.

Sun Moumou argued the models were not similar and the evidence might be tampered with. Ximu Company said it took measures to prevent infringement and was unaware.

The court ruled that the images of virtual humans A and B are original art works. Sun Moumou’s act of publishing infringing models was substantially similar to the plaintiffs’ works, infringing their information network dissemination rights. Ximu Company, as an Internet service provider, was not jointly liable.

Sun Moumou was ordered to compensate 15,000 yuan. The judge emphasized that clarifying virtual humans’ legal attributes is vital for the industry, and rights should be determined by contracts while copyright infringement compensation should be comprehensively decided.

Guangzhou IP Protection Center Updates Patent Application Pre – examination Guidelines

The Guangzhou Intellectual Property Protection Center issued the “Guidelines for Pre – examination of Patent Applications of the Guangzhou Intellectual Property Protection Center (2025 Revision)”. It stipulates that to be a proposed filing entity, one must be registered in Guangzhou with independent legal person status, engage in high – end equipment manufacturing or new materials, have strong innovation capabilities, and no abnormal patent application behaviors in the past three years or bad records in the past year. Applicants need 1 authorized invention patent and social insurance payment certificates of 3 main full – time R & D personnel, along with other materials. The center will evaluate based on patent application volume, authorization rate, etc., select the best, pre – review, and submit to CNIPA. After approval, the list of filing entities will be announced regularly. The revision aims to standardize pre – examination, improve quality, and promote industry innovation in Guangzhou.

Market Regulatory总局 Announces 18 Typical Cases of Trademark Administrative Law Enforcement for “Protecting Brands”

Recently, the Market Regulatory总局 announced 18 typical trademark administrative law – enforcement cases for “Protecting Brands” to foster a social joint – force in brand – value protection. These cases span industries like batteries, wedding cars, luxury goods, and food, featuring diverse forms of trademark infringement. For instance, Li and others sold counterfeit “NANFU” batteries from 2017 – 2024, with a cumulative purchase value exceeding 2.48 million yuan and sales value over 1.39 million yuan. A wedding car rental case saw 15 companies using counterfeit “Rolls – Royce” cars for wedding services. The cases’ handling involves administrative penalties and criminal prosecution, showing market regulators’ efforts in combating trademark infringement and safeguarding the rights of trademark owners and consumers.

Trademark | 1 Million! International Sport Brand “FILA” Wins the Rights Protection Case

In a trademark infringement case, Fila Sports Co., Ltd. sued Mouqiu, Beijing ByteDance Technology Co., Ltd., and Mouwu. Mouqiu produced clothing with logos similar to Fila’s trademarks, sold them on multiple platforms, promoted using these logos, and named its accounts “FHILA”. The logos’ similarity in glyph, design, color, pronunciation, and composition could easily confuse the public, and since they were used on clothing, it infringed Fila’s trademark rights.

Mouqiu was ordered to stop the infringement immediately. The court supported Fila’s claim for 1 million yuan in compensation (924,390.3 yuan in economic losses and 75,609.7 yuan in reasonable expenses) due to Fila’s high – profile trademarks, Mouqiu’s obvious infringement intention, and large – scale, long – term infringement. The court also supported Fila’s request to eliminate the negative impact, and Mouqiu must do so on its WeChat video and Kuaishou accounts within 30 days after the judgment takes effect.

UPC Dynamics | Latest Progress of MED-EL’s Patent Infringement Lawsuit Against Nurotron’s Cochlear Implants

In June 2025, Austria’s MED-EL sued China’s Nurotron for patent infringement at the Hamburg Local Division of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) regarding the MRI-safe magnet design in cochlear implants (EP 4 074 373). In the interim measures stage, Nurotron was prohibited from selling or displaying “CS-30A” products in UPC member states. The patent, authorized in September 2022, focuses on MRI safety design, enhancing implant stability and signal conduction, and is commercially significant for MED-EL. In the formal lawsuit, there was a dispute over the service of pleadings. The UPC ruled it should be through the Hague Service Convention. This isn’t the first lawsuit related to this patent. For enterprises entering the European market, FTO assessments are advisable, and a dual – track strategy is recommended when facing lawsuits. The Nurotron case shows Chinese hearing implant enterprises may face high – risk patent challenges in the UPC system.

The Practice of Trademark Examination in Belt and Road Countries (I): Overseas Trademark Layout

This article offers a comprehensive guide on overseas trademark layout in Belt and Road countries. It lists relevant countries across different continents. When choosing countries for trademark registration, prioritize those for immediate export, long – term layout, and high – risk squatting ones. Consider core business, planned business, and related products for trademark categories. There are various trademark systems. In single – country registration, beware of squatting in South America, taboos for graphic trademarks, and goods number restrictions. For example, Thailand has absolute – reason review. To address lack of distinctiveness, submit usage evidence. Madrid system registration has low cost and easy management but long review time and requires a domestic basis. Some countries are not suitable for it. The article also gives naming suggestions and emphasizes trademark queries with different strategies for English and Chinese trademarks.

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