Bosideng chairman calls for IPR protection

The electronic business sector in China performed well in 2013, defying the global economic slowdown. But in the thriving e-business market, discord has arisen over infringement of intellectual property rights (IPR) damages between property owners, consumers and even e-business platforms.

Gao Dekang, chairman of Bosideng Group, and also a delegate to the National People's Congress (NPC), recently submitted a motion to the congress calling for IPR for e-business platforms to be strengthened, in which he proposed several suggestions to the current legislative work of the Law on Electronic Business.  [Special coverage]

"I hope there can be more restrictions on IPR related content on e-business trade platforms," said Gao, complaining about pervasive IRP infringements in the e-business sector in recent years. He added that such infringements hurt brand producers as well as consumers.

Disputes on IPR make up the majority of e-business disputes, said the clothing tycoon. Plagiarizing others' photos is a typical case; posting photos, along with texts and videos stolen from name brands' online shops and claiming they are original.

In a bid to solve the problem, Gao asked for e-business platforms to validate vendors and their products listed on their page.

In China's current e-business market, 90 percent of B2C (business to customer) transactions are carried out as C2C (customer to customer) exchanges. Many regulators think they have a certain jurisdiction and thus have unveiled measures that overlap or even conflict with each other.

Gao suggested that the government should better coordinate different regulatory departments to create a joint-cooperative mechanism to eradicate IPR infringements.

At the same time, legislation on this area is still falling behind, since e-business, despite developing rapidly in China for a decade, is still considered a "new thing." Gao urged the People's Supreme Court to rectify trial standards to give courts at all levels a universal judicial interpretation of such lawsuits.