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Book Review: A Great Book for Understanding the Current Status of the World of Patents in China

6/24/2017

Several weeks ago, I read Mining Ideas for Diamonds: Comparing China and US IP Practices from Invention Selection to Patent Monetization by Tao Zhang and Jingui Fang. Dr. Zhang is Senior Director of IP Strategy for Huawei Device USA and is based in Silicon Valley while Jingui Fang is Senior Patent Engineer for Huawei,

I met Tao a while back and again ran into her at IPBC Global in Ottawa this week. She is a technically astute IP strategist and one of the more experienced professionals on China IP strategy I have met. She holds a PhD in physics from Stanford University and a JD from Concord Law School. She is a member of the California Bar and US Patent and Trademark Office. Before joining Huawei in 2012, Dr. Zhang was with HP for 23 years. She began her career at HP as an R&D engineer, then moved on to programme management, people management, and Director of IP licensing from 2004 to 2012. She also led HP’s online patent sales, storage patent licensing and HP Labs technology transfer.

Mining For Diamonds is written well, but with some hiccups regarding English usage and spelling from time to time. This small drawback does not take away from the value of the book, though. With such a paucity of good books on the patent system, including enforcement, in China, this excellent analysis of the system is a gem. The authors regularly compare the Chinese system to that of the US, allowing US readers and those familiar with "our" system to quickly understand.

The analysis of the Chinese system is very good. However, even though the book was published in early 2017, some of the information (such as that regarding software and business method patents) is already out of date. This simply shows the rapid rate of growth and evolution of the Chinese system.

Some interesting topics that the authors discuss is the lack of attorney-client privilege in China, the underuse of utility models, and how to establish and run an in-house patent protocol. As someone who worked at Qualcomm, which has perhaps the most exhaustive and impressive in-house patent system in the world, I was impressed and agree with almost all of what the authors explain.

There is something for everyone in this book. Whether you are are patent buyer/seller, CFO, VC, portfolio manager, valuation expert, M&A lawyer, patent prosecutor, or patent litigator, Mining For Diamonds will expand your understanding of China's patent system and how to take advantage of it.

There is still more to know, but this is a great start. Along with Doug Clark's excellent tome, Patent Litigation in China, this is perhaps the most useful book on Chinese patents, litigation, and monetization out there right now.

Tao Zhang, PhD

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Founder of China's Patent System Speaks at IPBC 2017

6/22/2017

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Dr. Lulin Gao: "US companies should feel comfortable filing patent litigation against Chinese companies in China"

On Monday, June 19 at IPBC Global in Ottawa, the Founding Commissioner of SIPO stated that US companies can feel comfortable filing patent cases against Chinese companies in China. This is a game-changer, and shows just how far China has come.

Full disclosure: Dr. Gao is the Founder and Chairman of my firm, Beijing East IP.

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Check out my new article in IAM Magazine: “How to Win a Patent case in China as a Plaintiff”

6/16/2017

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I invite you to take a look at my new article in IAM Magazine on "How to Win a Patent Case in China as a Plaintiff".

Below is a general outline of the content:

How to pick a good case.
How to prepare a case for filing
How to use private investigators
How to preserve (and obtain) evidence
Where to file
What to put (and not put) in a complaint
Why sharing is important to being a friend of China - Apple's China problem
What to do right after filing
How to proceed from after filing to trial
Trial in a Chinese patent case
How to not make a huge mistake in choosing Chinese counsel
How to be a friend to China
An Action Plan

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I just arrived in Ottawa for IPBC. Anyone want to meet?

6/15/2017

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I just arrived in Ottawa for IPBC Global. Dr. Lulin Gao, our firm's Chairman and the father of the Chinese patent system, is also here along with my colleague Austin Chang. Dragon Wang, a VP and one of our top patent litigators arrives Friday night.

I would like to invite anyone interested in learning more about intellectual property, patents, and patent litigation in China to visit us. If anyone is also early (the conference officially starts on Sunday) please email (Erick.Robinson@BeijingEastIP.com) or call/text (+1 713 498 6047).

We will be in Ottawa through Wednesday, June 21. Please come by and let's chat!

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Thank you to IAM and to my colleagues and clients for selecting me as a leading IP strategist for the third consecutive year!

6/14/2017

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A big Chinese "谢谢!" to everyone for selecting me to the IAM Strategy 300 – The World’s Leading IP Strategists for the third year in a row!

Each year, the World's Leading IP Strategists identifies the 300 most highly skilled individuals from around the world in the development and execution of strategies that maximize the value of patents, copyright, trademarks and other intellectual property rights. Published online by Intellectual Asset Management (IAM), the IP industry’s leading journal, this list of highly regarded IP practitioners is compiled after extensive research by teams in London, Washington DC and Hong Kong. The IAM research team annually speaks to a wide range of senior corporate IP managers in North America, Europe and Asia, as well as third-party IP service providers, in order to identify the men and women whose expertise in IP creation, development and monetization has attracted the greatest respect of their peers.

"Each year our IAM Strategy 300 publication grows in esteem and respect as the go-to source of reference for those seeking to identify the women and men who offer best-in-class expertise,” says Joff Wild, IAM editor. “The Intellectual Property industry grows in prominence as more and more of the world’s top companies rely on IP to grow their enterprises.” The IAM Strategy 300 is available in printed format and online at http://www.iam-media.com/Strategy300/

About IAM
IAM (http://www.IAM-media.com) is produced in London by the IP Division of Globe Business Media Group and reports on intellectual property as a business asset. Its primary focus is on how intellectual property can be best managed and exploited to create corporate value. The publication's core readership comprises senior executives in IP-owning companies, corporate counsel, private practice lawyers and attorneys, licensing and technology transfer managers, and investors and analysts.

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Come meet me and the founder of the Chinese patent system at IPBC in Ottawa next week!

6/8/2017

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Welcome to the China Patent Blog by Erick Robinson. Erick Robinson's China Patent Blog discusses China's patent system and China's surprisingly effective procedures for enforcing patents. China is leading the world in growth in many areas. Patents are among them. So come along with Erick Robinson while he provides a map to the complicated and mysterious world of patents and patent litigation in China.

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Erick Robinson is an experienced American trial lawyer and U.S. patent attorney based in Beijing. He is a Partner at Porter Hedges LLP, where he manages patent litigation, licensing, and prosecution in China and the US.

Book Review: A Great Book for Understanding the Current Status of the World of Patents in China

Founder of China's Patent System Speaks at IPBC 2017

Check out my new article in IAM Magazine: “How to Win a Patent case in China as a Plaintiff”

I just arrived in Ottawa for IPBC. Anyone want to meet?

Thank you to IAM and to my colleagues and clients for selecting me as a leading IP strategist for the third consecutive year!

Come meet me and the founder of the Chinese patent system at IPBC in Ottawa next week!

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