Regional authorities should crack down on copyright pirates who operate across provincial borders, according to the State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO).

The office has called on regional patent management departments to co-operate on enforcement to better prevent patent violations.

They should also publicize their local patent protection campaigns to help create a favourable climate for investment and consumer confidence, the SIPO's Department of Co-ordination and Management said.

Regional patent departments must work with local public security, industrial and commercial sectors to smash illegal organizations which cheat consumers, according to the department.

Over the past two years, local patent management departments have increased inspections at big commodity fairs and exhibitions to protect patented products, said departmental official Chen Mingyuan.

The fifth International High Technology and Products Fair, which was held last month in Shenzhen, saw no cases of intellectual property infringement thanks to joint efforts from regional patent, trademark and foreign trade departments.

"China's patent system has made remarkable achievements over the past two decades,'' said SIPO's vice-commissioner Tian Lipu.

Since China implemented the Patent Law in 1985, the SIPO has received more than 1.62 million patent applications. Domestic applications account for 83 per cent and foreign ones comprise 17 per cent, according to the latest SIPO statistics.

A total of 116 countries and regions have registered patent protection applications in China. Japan applied for most of these patents in China last year, followed by the United States, Germany, the Republic of Korea, the Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Britain, Sweden and Italy.

SIPO's commissioner Wang Jingchuan, said China has revised hundreds of articles in intellectual property laws and regulations to the standards of the World Trade Organization .

"Last year, experts from the United States and Europe commented positively on China's intellectual property legal documents and actions after we promised to abide by the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights,'' said Wang.

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