On this November 11, the revision of the Copyright Law, which will come into effect on June 1, 2021, was voted with greenlight to pass at the 23rd meeting of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress.

The newly revised Copyright Law stipulates that for intentional infringements causing serious impact, punitive damages of more than one time and less than five times the amount of compensation can be applied. If the actual losses of the right holder, the illegal income of the infringer, and the royalties are difficult to calculate, the courts shall, based on the circumstances of the infringement, award a compensation of not less than 500 yuan and not more than 5 million yuan.

The newly revised Copyright Law has also adjusted the definition of "work", changing the expression of "film works and works created by methods similar to film production" in the current law to "audiovisual works".

The newly revised Copyright Law stipulates that when investigating alleged infringements of copyright and copyright-related rights, the competent copyright authority may inquire the parties concerned and investigate the circumstances related to the suspected illegal acts; conduct the site of the suspected illegal acts on the premises and objects Inspection; consult and copy contracts, invoices, account books and other relevant materials related to suspected illegal acts; may seal up or detain places and objects suspected of illegal acts.

The newly revised Copyright Law also clarifies that right holders can take technical measures to protect copyright and copyright-related rights.

(Source: China National Intellectual Property Administration)