Writer's trademark victory, a step forward for copyright protection

LAST WEEK, Zheng Yuanjie, a fairytale writer, succeeded in persuading the Trademark Review Committee of the State Administration for Market Regulation to annul the trademark of Pipilu, a leading character in one of Zheng's works, which had been registered by a Western food restaurant in Zhengzhou, Central China's Henan province, 14 years ago. Yanzhao Metropolis Daily comments:

This is a first illegal Pipilu trademark that Zheng has conquered. There remain another 191 Pipilu trademarks registered in various fields nationwide for him to deal with.

In fact, Zheng has paid special attention to protecting his copyrights since his works became famous in the 1980s. He has authorized the commercial use of Pipilu, and developed a series of derivatives in animation and video games featuring the character.

Given the difficulty of annulling a registered trademark, even if it is illegal, he has registered Pipilu as a trademark in various different business sectors to prevent others from doing so. But unless the trademark is renewed, the registration expires automatically in three years if the business is not operating, according to the Trademark Law, which has become an increasingly heavy financial burden for Zheng given the popularity of the character.

The turning point for Zheng's struggle has been a legal explanation issued by the Supreme People's Court in January that protects authors' copyright of the characters they create. Were it not for this, Zheng might not have been able to annul the restaurant's Pipilu trademark.

Even so, Zheng has not obtained any compensation for his economic loss or to cover the costs of his lawsuit. The law should be revised to not only defend the legal rights of copyright owners, but also to compensate them for violations of their copyrights. And the owners and users of the illegal trademarks should be punished, to deter the potential followers.

The relevant laws must stand firmly on the side of the copyright owners, not the copyright infringers.