China and US Hold Forum on Internet Copyright Protection

Copyright officials and experts from China and the U.S. have gathered at a forum in Beijing to discuss worldwide copyright issues such as Google's digital library.

China's copyright official says internet copyright protection not only needs the joint efforts of China and U.S., but also cooperation among the international community.

Zhangcheng has more.

Last November, China's National Copyright Administration signed a framework of strategic cooperation on copyright protection with its U.S. counterpart.

Following the move, the communication between the two countries on copyright issues is frequent with several forums being held this year.

Yan Xiaohong, deputy chief of China National Copyright Administration said it's significant for the U.S., the internet power, and China, the latecomer enjoying rapid development in internet technology, to exchange experiences on internet copyright protection.

"China is a member state of the World Intellectual Property Organization Copyright Treaty. Generally speaking, the legal system of China's internet protection keeps the same pace as the rest of the world. But due to its rapid development, some copyright related problems need to be solved."

Google's digital library has become a hot topic at this forum. Four years ago, Google started to digitalize all the published books in the world without the authorization of the authors and publishers. Google was consequently taken to court by copyright holders in the U.S. and China.

Maureen Collins, an associate professor from the U.S. John Marshall Law School has elaborated the root of this issue.

"The biggest problem with Google and their efforts to digitalize text books is that in terms of copyright mark and tap. Now America says Google has asked for forgiveness and permission. They consider buying copyrights and are asked to compensate writers. Many people make lawsuit not for money, but their rights. The government also concerned."

Some Chinese copyright experts say the forum provides a platform for China to learn from its U.S. counterpart.

Zheng Shengli, chief of international intellectual property research center with Peking University is one of them.

He says the case of Google could be a good lesson for people to learn. China can see how the U.S. solves this problem related to public interest. Meanwhile, China should think about how to use its experiences to improve internet copyright protection in China.

Also at the forum, Wang Ziqiang, a senior official with the National Copyright Administration emphasized the joint efforts of the international community to tackle internet copyright issues.

"The internet is a transnational tool. But looking at the big picture, many countries didn't work out effective measures to protect internet copyrights. In this way, we have a lot of work to do. The international community should make joint efforts."

He added the Chinese Government has fought heavily against internet copyright infringement for five consecutive years with over 300 illegal websites shutting down.

Zhangcheng, CRI News.