GUO, Hua

Abstract: For the People’s Republic of China, intellectual property (IP) is a new legal and social concept. Formal legislation was first introduced in the 1980s and was later strengthened. Due to recent publicity, however, social awareness of IP rights in China has grown. Following a series of ministerial and commission rules concerning technology transfer, universities now usually own the IP resulting from government-funded research. Not surprisingly, the number of patent applications filed by Chinese universities has increased rapidly, exceeding 13,000 in 2004. But such numbers may reflect a trend for researchers and institutions to use patents as a way of enhancing their reputations, rather than for actually transferring or commercializing technology. Most universities still lack institutional IP policies and independent offices responsible for IP management. Rates of technology transfer and commercialization, while difficult to observe, remain low. Still, some world-class universities, such as Tsinghua University and Beijing University, have become adept at IP management. These are both an exception to and an example for other universities in China, having successfully adapted IP management policies and practices to the country’s legal and economic circumstances.