Olympics-China launches ‘high pressure’ crackdown on Olympic intellectual property rights violations

FILE PHOTO: The Beijing 2022 logo is seen outside the headquarters of the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Organizing Committee in Shougang Park, the site of a former steel mill, in Beijing, China, November 10, 2021. REUTERS / Thomas Peter / File Photo

December 8, 2021

BEIJING (Reuters) – China is cracking down on any unauthorized use of the Olympic logos or athletes’ names as part of a special campaign to protect intellectual property rights during the World Cup. Winter Olympics from February 4 to 20 in Beijing, state news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday.

The campaign started in October and will last until June, Xinhua news agency quoted China’s National Intellectual Property Office (CNIPA) as saying.

Any “malicious” trademark registrations using the names of famous Olympic athletes and businesses that take advantage of Olympic elements without permission would be targeted, with authorities closely monitor factories and e-commerce platforms, they said.

The campaign aims to put “high pressure” on any such violation and “raise the awareness of the whole society about respecting and protecting the intellectual property rights of the Winter Olympics”. CNIPA director, Zhang Zhicheng, was quoted by Xinhua News Agency.

Earlier this month, in a move that underscores the focus of the campaign, Beijing customs officials announced they had seized 100 pieces of cloth bearing the Olympic five rings in a parcel.

The sender failed to prove it was authorized by the International Olympic Committee.

They describe it as the first cross-border cargo case related to Olympic logo infringement that they have seized this year.

(Reporting by Albee Zhang and Brenda Goh; Editing by Rohith Nair)