U.S. companies filing suit against Chinese defendants in U.S. district courts, alleging counterfeiting and IP infringement, is not a new phenomenon. But recently, hundreds of Chinese sellers and online distributors have been targeted with infringement allegations initiated by Chinese competitors.
What is behind the increase in Chinese IP litigation, and why are Chinese entities choosing to litigate their disputes in the U.S.?
Previously, Chinese business strategy included economically outperforming U.S. counterparts by capitalizing on competitive advantages through access to cheap resources such as labor and raw materials. Chinese entities did not pay much attention to IP protection because what they often provided was a commodity, and the primary driver of competition in a commoditized market is price. The businesses had tremendous success and dominated markets, but now they face a new challenge: competition from Chinese counterparts who have the same competitive advantages. In other words, Chinese-against-Chinese competition on U.S. turf.
For many of these entities, the result is a shift in business strategy to emphasize IP protection through creation and acquisition of all forms of IP. Indeed, Chinese-owned IP is surging in the U.S. and worldwide, and China is quickly becoming the world’s largest source of IP filings. In 2022, China held the most applications globally for patent, trademark, copyright, and industrial design. Thus, Chinese entities are also increasingly becoming IP plaintiffs — in a change from their historical reputation as IP offenders — attacking quite quickly and broadly.
U.S. companies filing suit against Chinese defendants in U.S. district courts, alleging counterfeiting and IP infringement, is not a new phenomenon. But recently, hundreds of Chinese sellers and online distributors have been targeted with infringement allegations initiated by Chinese competitors.
What is behind the increase in Chinese IP litigation, and why are Chinese entities choosing to litigate their disputes in the U.S.?
Chinese Businesses Acquire U.S. IP to Curtail Competition Posed by Chinese Competitors U.S. companies filing suit against Chinese defendants in U.S. district courts, alleging counterfeiting and IP infringement, is not a new phenomenon. But recently, hundreds of Chinese sellers and online distributors have… Read the full IIPLA blog post: https://iipla.org/blog/chinese-businesses-acquire-u-s-ip-to-curtail-competition-posed-by-chinese-competitors