外商慎入：中国电子业推进知识产权布局

看到“中国的知识产权(Chinese IPR)”这个词，有些愤世嫉俗的人可能会以“未来的历史学家”或是“军事情报”等双关语来嘲笑它；但英国《金融时报(Financial Times)》最近一篇报导指出：“中国专利申请数量以每年超越20%的速度飞快成长，反映了该国对财产、特别是知识产权之文化态度的深刻改变──尽管中国官方体系在知识产权保护方面仍有许多不足之处。” 更重要的是，中国专利申请数量的成长，可能会影响那些不愿意在中国申请专利的外国公司；相对于认为中国专利体系与中国专利拥有致命缺陷而忽略之，来自海外的厂商其实反而应该投入时间与资源在中国申请专利，才能与中国本土厂商竞争。 最近有一篇由EETimes姊妹公司UBM Techinsights 所发布的报告(China Semiconductor Company Analysis and IP Landscape)，也呼应了以上观点；该报告指出，中国本土厂商正在由“低成本离散组件制造商，转型为无论是在中国或是全球市场上的长期竞争对手。” 根据来自美国专利与商标局(U.S. Patent and Trademark Office)的统计，美国所拥有的半导体专利数量持续领先全球，占据总数量四成的比例；日本半导体专利数量则排名第二，占据全球总数量10.7%的比例。中国则以623项专利持有数量，排名全球第十六。而Techinsights的报告指出，自2005年起，中国一年之内所公布的专利与申请案数量已经超越美国。

1995至2009年日、美、中、韩、欧等地拥有专利数量变化
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Techinsights 认为，中国专利活动自2000年以后开始增加的原因与其“909计划(Project 909)”有关，该计划旨在鼓励中国发展本土IC设计与制造能力。目前在中国的专利申请案中，有九成是由当地芯片业者提出，由此可假设这些公司都很年轻，仍是以中国本土市场为主要目标；而Techinsights报告显示，那些业者中没有任何一家曾在美国法院强制执行专利权。 本文授权编译自EE Times，版权所有，谢绝转载 本文下一页：中国厂商目标：保本土，冲全球

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{pagination} 无论如何，忽视中国对于追求专利越来越浓厚的兴趣是不智之举，当地芯片供应商的定位是在保卫本土市场之余，也有可能扰乱全球市场，因此TechInsights建议客户投资在中国取得专利，才能保卫在这个庞大市场的自家知识产权，以利进军中国市场与取得当地市占率。 TechInsights 报告指出，在总数约400~500家的中国无晶圆厂芯片业者中，北京中星微电子(Beijing Vimicro)、展讯通信(Spreadtrum Communications)与深圳中兴微电子(Zhongxing Microelectronics，为ZTE集团子公司)是中国拥有专利数量前三大的公司，分别拥有2,445项、908项与588项专利。 此 外TechInsights 也分析了30家中国半导体业者的产品、技术与专利，发现其中有数家公司“展现了在产业价值链上提升，并与西方或台湾、日本领导厂商竞争的实际承诺”；那几家公司包括华为(Huawei)的子公司海思(HiSilicon)，以及展讯、深圳中兴微电子。 本文授权编译自EE Times，版权所有，谢绝转载 编译：Judith Cheng 参考英文原文：Yoshida in China: Beijing patent push，by Junko Yoshida

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{pagination} Yoshida in China: Beijing patent push Junko Yoshida Instead of dismissing the Chinese patent system as fatally flawed, foreign companies might be better advised to invest in filing patents in China. PARIS—Cynics tend to mock the term “Chinese IPR” (intellectual property rights) as an oxymoron—like “future historians” and “military intelligence.” But as the Financial Times reported recently, “the rapid rise in Chinese patent filings, which have been growing at a rate of more than 20 percent a year, reflects a profound change in cultural attitudes to property, and intellectual property in particular—even if the Chinese system for protecting IP rights still has many deficiencies.” More important, the growth in Chinese patent filings is likely to affect foreign companies that may have been reluctant to file for patents in China. Instead of dismissing the Chinese patent system as being fatally flawed and Chinese patents as hopelessly defective, foreign companies might be better advised to invest time and resources in filing patents in China to compete with Chinese companies. A recent report, "China Semiconductor Company Analysis and IP Landscape” by UBM Techinsights, a sister company to the publisher of EE Times, echoes this view. The Techinsights’ report claims that Chinese-based companies are “transitioning from low-cost manufacture of discrete parts to long-term market competitors, both in China and around the globe.” The U.S. continues to lead the list of total semiconductor patents granted with 40 percent of the total count (based on data gathered from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office). Japan is second with 10.7 percent of the total. In contrast, China comes in at No. 16, with 623 patents granted. However, comparing the U.S. to China in terms of issued patents and published applications for a particular year, “the trend shows China exceeding the U.S. starting in 2005,” according to TechInsights. Top China patent holders TechInsights attributes the increased Chinese patent activity after 2000 to its Project 909, a national effort to encourage domestic IC design and production capabilities. Considering that Chinese chip companies have filed about 90 percent of their patent applications in China (rather than elsewhere in the world), one can reasonably assume that these Chinese companies are still young, their focus remaining on the domestic market. TechInsights also pointed out that none of the companies profiled in its report has enforced patent rights in U.S. courts. Still, it's a bad idea to take lightly China's growing interest in pursuing patents. Domestic chip vendors are positioning themselves to protect their home market while potentially disrupting global markets. TechInsights advises clients to invest in “patenting in China to secure their IP in this large market place as a means of providing market access and to protect share once it is established.” Among a reported 400 to 500 fabless chip companies in China, TechInsights identified Beijing Vimicro Co. (2,445 patents), Spreadtrum Communications (908 patents) and Shenzhen Zhongxing Microelectronics, a subsidiary of ZTE Group (588 patents), as the top three Chinese patent holders. TechInsights analyzed 30 Chinese semiconductor companies, including products, technologies and patents. It found several companies “showing real promise in moving up the value chain and competing with Western, Taiwanese and Japanese leaders.” They include HiSilicon, a subsidiary of Huawei, Spreadtrum and Shenzhen Zhongxing Microelectronics.