The increase of the protection of the intellectual property for foreign wines in China

In early 2013, the People's Court of Xiamen Siming District (Southeast China), gave a judgment on a criminal case registered trademark infringement caused by the manufacture and sell of counterfeit foreign wines in China.
The four people involved were sentenced to a total term of 10 years and 6 months suspended sentence and a fine of 480,000 RMB. Among them, the defendant Gao was also forbidden to manufacture and market the wine during this grace period.

The judge in charge of the case said the sentence condemning members authors of counterfeit foreign wines to 6 years and 6 months of imprisonment constitute a legal precedent that acts as a deterrent.
The injunction was issued to the defendant who has been sentenced to suspended, to sever relations with the authors of the manufacture and sale of counterfeit goods and prevent recurrence during the period of probation.

In the process of investigation and trial the people in charge of this case have obtained the full cooperation of the Wine Industry.
The French company Pernod Ricard, product owners of the brand, made a perfect cooperation with investigative agencies and collection of evidence agencies.
This cooperation helped the judicial authority to resolve the dispute and fight against the manufacture and sale of counterfeit products, and thus safeguard the interests of consumers.

The company Pernod Ricard said after the sentence that counterfeit alcohol products affect not only the interests of brand owners but also the rights of consumers and especially can cause health problems. Pernod Ricard has developed a long-term cooperation with national ministries and members of the Wine Industry, and persists for innovation in anti-counterfeiting technology to better protect the interests of consumers.

During the year 2012, the Chinese Government has extended the protection of intellectual property in some provinces and cities in China.
In May 2012, the People's Court of Chongqing issued a judgment ordering the cessation of the sale of counterfeit foreign wines and five people involved were sentenced to a total term of imprisonment of 7 years probation and a fine of 17 million RMB.
In December 2012, the People's Court of Urumqi has also made a judgment on infringement and the defendant was sentenced to 4 years in prison sentence and a fine of 50 million RMB.
This series of judgments clearly show that the Chinese government attaches great importance to the protection of intellectual property and fight against counterfeiting of foreign wines.

According to statistics from 2008 to 2013, the Chinese judicial authorities, including local police, local Business Administration, the supervisory authority of the wine, the Authority of Trade resolved 63 cases involving the manufacture and sale of counterfeit foreign wines, 158 people involved were convicted and the fine has reached more than 1,500 million RMB.