WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/C/W/364
15 July 2002
(02-3922)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English
REVIEW OF LEGISLATION
Questions posed by Australia
By means of a communication from the Permanent Mission of Australia, dated 11 July 2002,
the Secretariat has received copies of the following questions that Australia has communicated to
China and the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu.
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CHINA
A. TRADEMARKS AND GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
1. What legislation does China have in place to implement protection of geographical
indications as required by Articles 22 and 23 of the TRIPS Agreement?
2. How are geographical indications defined under the relevant legislation?
3. Does China provide protection for geographical indications from other countries?
4. How many geographical indications are currently recognised by China, and how many
proposed geographical indications are currently being considered for recognition by China?
5. Does China's legislation provide a mechanism to adjudicate between competing claims for
recognition of a particular geographical indication?
6. How does China's trademark legislation define a trademark?  Are letters, numerals, shapes
and colours eligible for registration as trademarks, as required by Article 15 of the TRIPS Agreement?
7. How does China meet the obligations of Article 21 of the TRIPS agreement concerning the
licensing and assignment of trademarks?
B. COPYRIGHT
8. How does China meet the obligations of Article 14 of the TRIPS Agreement concerning the
protection of performers, producers of phonog rams and broadcasting organisations?
9. What procedures are available to a person seeking to enforce his or her copyright?
(a) What remedies are available to a person whose copyright has been infringed?IP/C/W/364
Page 2
(b) If  awards of damages are available, how are the amounts of damages assessed?
(c) If monetary fines are imposed on copyright infringers, how is the amount of the fine
assessed?
C. BIOTECHNOLOGY
10. What intellectual property protection is available for biotechnology inventions?  Does the
People's Republic of China exclude from patentability any of the items listed in Article 27 (3) of the
TRIPS Agreement?
THE SEPARATE CUSTOMS TERRITORY OF TAIWAN, PENGHU, KINMEN AND MATSU
A. TRADEMARKS AND GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
1. What legislation does Chinese Taipei have in place to implement protection of geographical
indications as required by Articles 22 and 23 of the TRIPS Agreement?
2. How are geographical indications defined under the relevant legislation?
3. Does Chinese Taipei provide protection for geographical indications from other countries?
4. How many geographical indications are currently recognised by Chinese Taipei, and how
many proposed geographical indications are currently being considered for recognition by ChineseTaipei?
5. Does Chinese Taipei's legislation provide a mechanism to adjudicate between competing
claims for recognition of a particular geographical indication?
6. How does Chinese Taipei's trademark legislation define a trademark?  Are letters, numerals,
shapes and colours eligible for registration as trademarks, as required by Article 15 of the TRIPSAgreement?
7. How does Chinese Taipei meet the obligations of Article 21 of the TRIPS agreement
concerning the licensing and assignment of trademarks?
B. C
OPYRIGHT
8. How does Chinese Taipei meet the obligations of Article 14 of the TRIPS Agreement
concerning the protection of performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organisations?
9. What procedures are available to a person seeking to enforce his or her copyright?
(a) What remedies are available to a person whose copyright has been infringed?
(b) If  awards of damages are available, how are the amounts of damages assessed?
(c) If monetary fines are imposed on copyright infringers, how is the amount of the fine
assessed?IP/C/W/364
Page 3
C. BIOTECHNOLOGY
10. What intellectual property protection is available for biotechnology inventions?  Does
Chinese Taipei exclude from patentability any of the items listed in Article 27 (3) of the TRIPS
Agreement?
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