1  
Decision of the State Council on Amending the Regulations on Computer  
Software Protection  
(Adopted at the 231st Executive Meeting of the State Council on January 16, 2013, 
promulgated by Decree No. 63 2 of the State Council of the People’s Republic of 
Chin a on January 30, 2013, and effective as of March 1, 2013)  
 
    The State Council decides to amend the Regulations on Computer Software 
Protection as follows:  
    The second paragraph of Article 24 is amended to read: “ Whoever commits the 
act referred to in  subparagraph (1) or (2) of the preceding paragraph may concurrently  
be fined 100 yuan for per copy , or not less than one time but not more than five times  
the value of the products; whoever  commits the act referred to in subparagraph  (3), 
(4) or (5) of th e preceding paragraph may concurrently be fined not more than 
200,000 yuan. ” 
    This Decision shall be effective as of March 1, 2013.  
    The Regulations on Computer Software Protection  shall be amended according 
to this Decision and be promulgated anew.  
 
 
Regulations on Computer Software Protection  
(Promulgated by Decree No. 339 of the State Council of the People’s Republic of 
China  on December 20, 2001 , revised for the first time in accordance with the 
Decision of the State Council on Annulling and Amend ing Certain Administrative 
Regulations on January 8, 2011, and revised for the second time in accordance with 
the Decision of the State Council on Amending the  Regulations on Computer 
Software Protection on January 30, 2013 ) 
 
Chapter I  General Provisions  
  2     Article 1   These Regulations are formulated in accordance with the Copyright 
Law of the People’s Republic of China, for the purposes of protecting the rights and 
interests of copyright owners of computer software, regulating the relationship of 
intere sts generated in the development, dissemination and use of computer software, 
encouraging the development and application of computer software, and promoting 
the development of the software industry and the informatization of the national 
economy.  
    Article 2   For the purposes of these Regulations, the term “computer software” 
(hereinafter referred to as “software”) means computer programs and relevant 
documents.  
    Article 3   For the purposes of these Regulations, the following definitions 
apply:  
    (1) “computer program” means a coded instruction sequence which may be 
executed by devices with information processing capabilities such as computers, or a 
symbolic instruction sequence or symbolic statement sequence which may be 
automatically converted into  a coded instruction sequence for the purpose of 
obtaining certain expected results; the source program and object program  of a 
computer program shall be deemed as one and the same work;  
    (2) “documents” means literal descriptions or charts used to desc ribe the content, 
structure, design, functional performance, historical development, test results and 
usage  of a program , such as program design instructions, flowcharts, and user’s 
manuals;  
    (3) “software developer” means a legal entity or other organi zation that actually 
organizes, or directly carries out, the development of a piece of software and assumes 
responsibility for the accomplished software, or a natural person who independently 
completes, relying on his own conditions, the development of a p iece of software and 
assumes responsibility therefor;  
    (4) “software copyright owner” means a natural person, legal entity or other 
organization that enjoys software copyright in accordance with these Regulations.  
    Article 4   The software protected u nder these Regulations must be developed  3 independently by the developer and fixed on a tangible medium . 
    Article 5   Chinese citizens, legal entities or other organizations enjoy, in 
accordance with these Regulations, copyright in the software which they  have 
develo ped, whether published or not.  
    Foreigners or stateless persons having software first published within the 
territory of China enjoy copyright in accordance with these Regulations.  
    Software copyright enjoyed by foreigners or stateless per sons under an 
agreement concluded between China and the country to which the  developers  belong 
to or in which they have their habitual residences, or, under an international treaty 
acceded to by China, is protected in acco rdance with these Regulations.  
    Article 6   The protection of software copyright under these Regulations shall 
not extend to the ideas, processing, operating methods, mathematical concepts or the 
like used in software development.  
    Article 7   A software  copyright owner may register wi th the software 
registration institution recognized by the copyright administration department of the 
State Council. A registration certificate issued by the software registration institution 
is a preliminary proof of the registered items.  
    Fees shall b e paid for software registration. The charging standards for software 
registration shall be provided for by the copyright administration department of the 
State Council jointly with the competent department for pricing of the State Council.  
 
Chapter II  Software Copyright  
 
    Article 8   A software copyright owner shall enjoy the following rights:  
    (1) the right of divulgation, that is, the right to decide whether to make the 
software available to the public;  
    (2) the right of developership, that is, the right to claim developer’s identity and 
to have the developer’s name mentioned in connection with the software;  
    (3) the right of alteration, that is, the right to supplement or abridge the software, 
or to change the sequence of instructions or stat ements;   4     (4) the right of reproduction, that is, the right to produce one or more copies of 
the software;  
    (5) the right of distribution, that is, the right to provide the original copy or 
reproductions of the software to the public by selling or don ating;  
    (6) the right of rental, that is, the right to authorize others to use temporarily and 
onerously the original copy or reproductions of the software, except where the 
software itself is not the essential object of the rental;  
    (7) the right of  communication through information network, that is, the right to 
make the software available to the public by wire or wireless means so that members 
of the public may have access to the software from a place and at a time individually 
chosen by them;  
    (8) the right of translation, that is, the right to converse the natural language of 
the software into another natural langua ge; and  
    (9) other rights which shall be enjoyed by software copyright owners.  
    A software copyright owner may authorize othe rs to exploit his copyright , and 
has a  right to receive remuneration.  
    A software copyright owner may transfer, wholly or in part, his copyright, and 
has a right to receive remuneration.  
    Article 9   Except where otherwise provided in these Regulation s, the copyright 
in a piece of software belongs to its developer.  
    In the absence of proof to the contrary , the natural person, legal entity or other 
organization whose name is mentioned in connection with a piece of software  will be 
its developer . 
    Article 10   Where a piece of software is developed jointly by two or more 
natural persons, legal entities or other organizations, the copyright ownership shall be 
agreed upon in a written contract between the co -developers. Where, in the absence of 
a writt en contract or an explicit agreement in the contract, the joint software can be 
separated into independent parts and exploited separately, each co -developer may 
enjoy independent copyright in the part which he has developed, but the exploitation 
of such co pyright shall  not extend to the copyright in the joint software as a whole.  5 Where the joint software cannot be separated into independent parts and exploited 
separately, its copyright is enjoyed jointly by those co -developers and exploited by 
agreement ; in the absence of such an agreement, any co -developer shall not prevent, 
without justification, the other(s) from exploiting the copyright except the right of 
transfer; however, the profit received for exploiting the joint software shall be 
reasonably shared  between all the co -developers.  
    Article 11   Where a piece of software is developed on commission, the 
copyright ownership shall be agreed upon in a written contract between the 
commissioning and the commissioned parties ; in the absence of a written con tract or 
an explicit agreement in the contract, the copyright shall be enjoyed by the 
commissioned party.  
    Article 12   Where a piece of software is developed under a task assigned by a 
State organ, the ownership and exploitation of its copyright shall b e stipulated in a 
letter of project assignment or a contract ; in the absence of an explicit stipulation in 
the letter of project assignment or the contract, the copyright shall be enjoyed by the 
legal entity or other organizat ion that has accepted the task . 
    Article 13   Where a piece of software developed  by a natural person working in 
a legal entity or other organization in the course of his service involves one of the 
following circumstances, the copyright therein shall be enjoyed by such legal entity or 
organization, which may reward the natural person for the development of the 
software:  
    (1) the software is developed based on the development objective explicitly 
designated in the line of his service duty;  
    (2) the software is a foreseeable or n atural result of his work activities in the line 
of his service duty; or  
    (3) the software is developed mainly with the material and technical resources of 
the legal entity or other organization, such as funds, special equipment or unpublished 
special i nformation, and the legal entity or other organization assumes the 
responsibility therefor.  
    Article 14   The software copyright shall exist from the date on which its  6 development has been completed.  
    In the case of software copyright of a natural per son, the term of protection shall 
be the lifetime of such person and 50 years after his death, expiring on December 31 
of the fiftieth year after his death ; in the case of a piece of joint software, the term of 
protection shall expire on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the death of the last 
surviving developer.  
    In the case of software copyright of a legal entity or other organization, the term 
of protection shall be 50 years, expiring on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the 
first publicatio n of such software; however, if any such software has not been 
published within 50 years from the date on which its development has been 
completed, it shall be no longer prot ected under these Regulations.  
    Article 15   Where software copyright belongs to  a natural person, his 
success or(s) may, after his death, inherit the rights provided for in Article 8 of these 
Regulations except the right of developership, during the term of its copyright 
protection, in accordance with the Succession Law of the People’ s Republic of China.  
    Where software copyright belongs to a legal entity or other organization, the 
copyright shall, after the change or the termination of the legal entity or other 
organization, be enjoyed, during the term of protection provided for in  these 
Regulations, by the legal entity or other organization that has taken over the former’s 
rights and obligations, or, in the absence of such entity  or organization, by the State.  
    Article 16   Owners of lawful copies of a piece of software enjoy the  following 
rights:  
    (1) to install and store the software in devices with information processing 
capabilities, such as computers, according to the need of their use;  
    (2) to make backup copies against damage, provided that such owners do not 
offer ot hers in any way the backup copies for their use and that they destroy such 
copies once they lose the ownership thereof; and  
    (3) to make necessary alterations to the software in order to implement it in an 
actual environment of computer application or t o improve its functions or 
performance, provided that such owners do not, except otherwise agreed in the  7 contract, offer any third party the altered software without permission from the 
software copyright owner.  
    Article 17   A piece of software may be u sed by its installing, displaying, 
transmitting or storing for the purposes of studying or researching the design ideas or 
principles embodied therein, without permission from, and without payment of 
remuneration to , the software copyright owner.  
 
Chapter III  Software Copyright Licensing and Transfer  
 
    Article 18   In the case of a license to exploit software copyright, the parties 
shall conclude a licensing contra ct. 
    The licensee shall not exploit any right that the software copyright owner has not 
expressly granted in the contract.  
    Article 19   In the case of an exclusive license to exploit software copyright, the 
parties shall conclude a written contract.  
    In the absence of a written contract or an explicit agreement on exclusive license 
in the contract, the right that the licensee is authorized to exploit shall be deemed as a 
non-exclusive right.  
    Article 20   In the case of a transfer of software copyright, the parties shall 
conclude a written contract.  
    Article 21   Anyone that conclude s an exclusive licensing contract or a transfer 
contract of software copyright may register with the software registration institution 
recognized by the copyright administration depart ment of the State Council.  
    Article 22   A Chinese citizen, legal enti ty or other organization that authorizes 
a foreigner’s exploiting software copyright, or transfers it to a foreigner, shall comply 
with the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Administration of 
Technology Import and Export.  
 
Chapter IV  Legal Liability  
  8     Article 23   Except where otherwise provided in the Copyright Law of the 
People’s Republic of China or these Regulations, anyone who commits any of the 
following acts of infringement shall, in light of the circumstances, bear civil liability 
by means of ceasing infringements, eliminating ill effects, making an apology, or 
compensating for losses:  
    (1) to publish or register a piece of software without the permission  of the 
software copyright owner;  
    (2) to publish or register a piece of software developed by another person as 
one’s own;  
    (3) to publish, or register, a piece of joint software as developed solely by 
oneself , without the permiss ion of the other co -developer(s);  
    (4) to have one ’s name mentioned in connection with, or a lter the name on, a 
piece of software developed by another person;  
    (5) to alter or translate a piece of software without the permiss ion of the software 
copyright owner; or  
    (6) to commit other acts of infringing upon software copyright.  
    Article 24  Except where otherwise provided in the Copyright Law of the 
People’s Republic of China, these Regulations, or other laws or administrative 
regulations, anyone who, without the permiss ion of the software copyright owner , 
commits any of the following act s of infringement shall, in light of the circumstances, 
bear civil liability by means of ceasing infringements, eliminating ill effects, making 
an apology, or compensating for losses; where such act also prejudices the public 
interest, the copyright admini stration department shall  order the infringer to cease 
infringements, confiscate illegal income, confiscate or destroy the infringing copies, 
and may impose a fine concurrently; where the circumstances are serious, the 
copyright administration department m ay confiscate the material, tools and equipment 
mainly used to produce infringing copies; and where the act violates the Criminal 
Law, criminal liability shall be investigated for the crime of infringing upon  copyright 
or selling infringing copies  in accor dance with the provisions of the Criminal Law:  
    (1) to reproduce, wholly or in part, a piece of software of the copyright owner;   9     (2) to distribute, rent or communicate to the public through information network 
a piece of software of the copyright ow ner; 
    (3) to knowingly circumvent or sabotage technological measures used by the 
copyright owner for protecting the software copyright;  
    (4) to knowingly remove or alter any electronic rights management information 
attached to a copy of a piece of so ftware; or  
    (5) to transfer, or authorize another person to exploit, the software copyright of 
the owner.  
    Whoever commits the act referred to in subparagraph (1) or (2) of the preceding 
paragraph may concurrently  be fined 100 yuan for per copy , or not less than one time 
but not more than five times  the value of the products; whoever  commits the act 
referred to in subparagraph  (3), (4) or (5) of the preceding paragraph may 
concurrently be fined not more than 200,000 yuan.  
    Article 25   The compensat ion paid for infringing upon software copyright shall 
be determined in accordance with Article 4 9 of the Copyright Law of the People’s 
Republic of China.  
    Article 26   A software copyright owner that can present evidence to prove that 
another person is c ommitting, or is to commit, an infringement which, if not being 
prevented promptly, is likely to cause irreparable harm to hi s lawful rights and 
interests , may, before instituting legal proceedings, apply to a people’s court, in 
accordance with Article 50 of the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China, 
for an order to stop t he relevant act and for mea sures of property preservation.  
    Article 27   In order to prevent infringement, a software copyright owner may, 
before instituting legal proceedings,  apply to a people’s court, in accordance with 
Article 5 1 of the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China, for evidence 
preservation where the evidence is likely to be missing, or to be obtained difficultly 
later.  
    Article 28   A publisher or prod ucer of copies of a piece of software that fails to 
prove the legal authorization for the publication or production, or, a distributor or 
renter of copies of a piece of software that fails to prove the legal source of the copies  10 which he distributes or ren ts, shall bear legal liabi lity. 
    Article 29   The development of a piece of software which is similar to a 
pre-existing one due to a limit of alternative forms of expression does not constitute 
an infringement of the copyright in the pre -existing one.  
    Article 30   A holder of copies of a piece of software that neither knows nor has 
reasonable grounds to know that such copies are infringing ones does not bear 
liability of compensation but shall cease the use of, and destroy, the infringing copies. 
Never theless, if the cease of use or the destruction of such copies is likely to cause 
heavy losses to him, the holder of such copies may, after paying reasonable 
remuneration to the software copyright owner, continue to use such copies.  
    Article 31   A dispu te over software copyright infringeme nt may be settled by 
mediation.  
    A dispute over a software copyright contract may be submitted to an arbitration 
institution for arbitration under an arbitration clause in the copyright contract or under 
a written ar bitration agreement concluded later between the parties.  
    Any party may institute legal proceedings directly in a people’s court in the 
absence of an arbitration clause in the contract or of a written arbitration agreement 
concluded afterwards between t he parties.  
 
Chapter V  Supplementary Provisions  
 
    Article 32   Any act of infringing upon software copyright committed prior to 
the entry into force of these Regulations shall be dealt with under the relevant 
provisions of the State that are in force at  the time when the act was committ ed. 
    Article 33   These Regulations shall be effective as of January 1, 2002. The 
Regulations on Computer Software Protection promulgated by the State Council on 
June 4, 1991 shall be repealed simultaneously.