Protecting Your Intellectual Property: What Your Chinese Manufacturer Can Do
Your intellectual property, your product design and the manufacturing process you’ve created are often what sets you apart from the competition. That’s why you want to ensure that your intellectual property rights are protected and that nobody can steal your idea and market it as their own. The best way to do this is to partner with a Chinese manufacturer who understands the importance of intellectual property protection, and who knows how to protect it even when they manufacture your product in China.
Work with an experienced IP lawyer
Before you decide to work with a Chinese manufacturer, it’s important to know if the company has solid partnership with any professional and experienced IP legal service. They can help you understand the risks involved and develop a strategy for protecting your IP. Here are seven ways your lawyer can help:
1. Review your contracts.
2. Train your employees on IP best practices.
3. Develop an IP management plan.
4. Register your copyrights and trademarks in China.
5. Monitor the market for infringements.
6. Take action against infringers
For example, Shield Works has long-term partnership with a local law firm specializing in IP laws, Innopat. Innopat is a professional patent and trademark agency authorized by the National Intellectual Property Administration of the People’s Republic of China. Since 2002, Innopat has been dedicated to the specialized practice of intellectual property law including patent, trademark and copyright law.
Register your intellectual property in China
Before you can take any legal action against an infringer, you need to ensure your intellectual property is registered in China. The first step is to file a trademark application with the China Trademark Office. If you have a patent, you’ll need to file a patent application with the China National Intellectual Property Administration. Once your intellectual property is registered, you can begin taking steps to defend your rights in court should there be any infringement. There are two options for registering IP in China.
As we mentioned above, you can either work with a lawyer to register it yourself or hire a company that specializes in this process (known as IP service providers). That can save a lot of headache.
Consider patent filing overseas
Filing for a patent is a costly and complicated process, but it’s often worth it to protect your intellectual property. If you’re manufacturing products in China, you should consider filing for a patent in China as well as in other countries where you plan to sell your products. Your Chinese manufacturer can help you with the paperwork and logistics of filing for a patent overseas. They can also help you monitor your product to make sure that no one is infringing on your intellectual property. By working with your Chinese manufacturer, you can help protect your invention and ensure that you get the credit (and profits) you deserve.
Companies with a western background, such as Shield Works, compared with local Chinese companies, have more experience in this regard, as they know better about the western legal system.
Make sure contracts are signed
The legal protection in China is weaker than that of the US, which means someone could copy your product and sell it before you ever receive permission from the US Patent Office.
You need to ensure that all future developments are owned by the factory and not just those covered by patents. The factory can make an exclusive license agreement with its employees who create these new inventions.
The contract should require employees to assign all their intellectual property rights in any invention they create during their employment to the company for a set time period (usually 10 years). It is also important that everyone involved understands what types of inventions are covered by this agreement, for example new formulations of products and processes for manufacturing goods.
Know When To Transfer Technology
When working with a Chinese manufacturer, it’s important to know when to transfer technology. If you’re working on a new product or process, you’ll want to keep the intellectual property (IP) in-house. But once the product is finalized and ready for mass production, it’s time to transfer the technology to your manufacturer. This will help protect your IP and prevent knock-offs. Here are a few things to keep in mind when deciding when to transfer technology:
1. The product should be finalized and ready for mass production.
2. You’ll want to keep the intellectual property in-house until this point.
3. Once the product is ready for mass production, it’s time to transfer the technology to your manufacturer.
There’s no need to stress how important it is to be aware of the risks of intellectual property theft and take steps to protect your products and designs, when working with a Chinese manufacturer. By taking these precautions aforementioned, you can help ensure that your intellectual property is safe from theft. Shield Works is a manufacturer that does everything it takes to protect customers’ IP and ensures a infringement-free manufacturing process in China with our exclusive security system. Interested in knowing more? Don’t hesitate to contact us!