Software Protection

Do Chinese laws protect the copyright of software which is developed by foreigners?

Software of foreigners or stateless persons shall enjoy copyright in China and protection under these regulations according to a bilateral agreement signed between China and the country to which the developer belongs or in which the developer habitually resides, or according to an international treaty to which China is a party.

What are the acts of infringing software copyright according to Chinese law？

• Publishing or registering the software without the approval of the software copyright owner;
• Publishing or registering the software developed by others in one's own name;
• Publishing or registering the software developed in cooperation with another person as a work completed by oneself alone, without the approval of the cooperating developer;
• Signing one's name to the software developed by another person or altering the signature on the software developed by another person;
• Revising or translating the software without the approval of the software copyright owner;
• Without the approval of the software copyright owner, Copying or partially copying the software of the copyright owner;
• Without the approval of the software copyright owner, releasing, leasing or disseminating through information networks the software of the copyright owner;
• Without the approval of the software copyright owner, intentionally avoiding or breaching the technical measures adopted by the copyright owner to protect his software copyright;
• Without the approval of the software copyright owner, intentionally deleting or altering the electronic information of software right management;
• Without the approval of the software copyright owner, transferring or licensing others to exploit the software copyright of the copyright owner.
• Other acts infringing upon the software copyright.

What legal responsibilities shall infringers bear?

Anyone who has committed any of the infringing acts without the approval of the software copyright owner shall, according to the circumstances, bear the civil responsibilities of stopping the infringement, eliminating the effects, making apologies, compensating for loss, etc;

For anyone who damages the public interests at the same time, the administrative department of copyright shall order the offender to stop the infringing acts, confiscate the illegal gains, confiscate and destroy the infringing copies, and may impose a fine on him at the same time;

If the circumstances are serious, the administrative department of copyright may also confiscate the materials, tools, equipment, etc. that are mainly used in the making of the infringing copies; if there is any violation of criminal laws, the criminal responsibilities shall be investigated for according to the provisions of the Criminal Law on the crime of infringing upon copyright law and the crime of selling infringing copies.

How to calculate the amount of compensation for infringing the software copyright?

The infringer shall, when having infringed upon the copyright or the rights related to copyright, make a compensation on the basis of the right holders' actual loss;

Where the actual loss is difficult to be calculated, the compensation may be made on the basis of the infringer's illegal gains. The amount of compensation shall also include the reasonable expenses paid by the obligee for stopping the act of tort.

Where the obligee's actual losses or the infringer's illegal gains cannot be determined, the court shall, on the basis of the seriousness of the act of tort, adjudicate a compensation of 500,000 Yuan or less. (Remark: Chinese Copyright Law is being amended and the compensation is expected to be raised.)