China amended the Seed Law to strengthen the protection of intellectual property rights in the seed industry

BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The 32nd Session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress voted on March 24 to amend the Seed Law, which will come into effect on March 1, 2022. The new law establishes a system of substantive derivative varieties and strengthens the protection of intellectual property rights in the seed industry.

Yang Heqing, deputy director of the Economic Law Office of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said that the current revision of the law focuses on strengthening the protection of intellectual property rights in the seed industry, and has intensified the protection of new plant variety rights from three aspects and improved the system of intellectual property rights protection in the seed industry: First, a system of substantive derivative varieties is established; second, the scope of protection of new plant variety rights is expanded; and third, the system of compensation for infringement is improved. "It is of great significance to promote the high-quality development of the seed industry and lay a solid foundation for food security and modern agricultural development."

The new law establishes a system of substantial derivative varieties. When commercially using a derivative variety formed by the breeding results of explicit modification and improvement of others, the consent of the owner of the original variety right is required and the royalties are paid. Yang Heqing said that the core of this system is to establish a benefit-sharing mechanism between the owner of the original breed right and the owner of the derivative breed, which reflects the respect for the intellectual achievements of the original breeder.

At the same time, the revised Seed Law expands the scope and protection of plant variety rights. The new law stipulates that no unit or individual may produce, reproduce or dispose of, promise to sell, sell, import, export or store propagation materials of authorized varieties for the purpose of reproduction without the permission of the owner of the right to new plant varieties. "These provisions expand the content of rights in plant variety rights and provide more opportunities for right holders to exercise their rights." Yang Heqing said.

In addition, the new law improves the system of compensation for infringement. The upper limit of punitive damages for intentional infringement of new plant variety rights will be increased from three times to five times, and the limit of compensation for difficult to determine amount will be increased from three million yuan to five million yuan. "Let the infringers pay a heavier price and further safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the owners of new plant variety rights." Yang Heqing said. (End)

Source: China News Network