Notice on Further Completing Efforts to Review and Designate Evidence in Administrative Law Enforcement on Copyright

Promulgation Date: 2020-11-15
Title: National Copyright Administration Notice on Further Completing Efforts to Review and Designate Evidence in Administrative Law Enforcement on Copyright
Document Number:
Expiration date: 
Promulgating Entities: National Copyright Administration
Source of text: WECHAT

To the copyright bureaus of all provinces, autonomous regions, and directly-governed municipalities, and the comprehensive administrative law enforcement agencies for the Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing cultural markets:

Notice is hereby given as follows on further completing efforts on review and designation of evidence for administrative law enforcement on copyright, in order to thoroughly implement the "Opinions on Strengthening Protection of Intellectual Property Rights" issued by the General Office of the Central Party Commission and the General Office of the State Council， to further increase the force of copyright protections, increase the efficacy of administrative law enforcement on copyright, improve work mechanisms for administrative law enforcement on copyright, reduce the burden on rights holders protecting their rights, and creating a positive commercial environment.

I. On Proof of Rights

1. When complainants make complaints to the administrative law enforcement departments for copyright, the administrative law enforcement departments for copyright shall request that the applicant provide evidence related to their claims on copyrights or copyright-related rights.

2. The following materials submitted by complainants may be evidence of copyright or copyright-related rights ownership: Working papers and originals; lawful publications; copyright registration certificates; contract for obtaining rights; copyright certification documents issued by the copyright certification institution designated by national copyright administration departments or the collective copyright management organizations; and other evidence on which a presumption of rights ownership may be presumed.

3. The administrative law enforcement departments for copyright shall ascertain that the works, performances, or audio recordings claimed by the complainant are protected by the "Copyright Law of the PRC" and is still within the protection period. Where there is no evidence to the contrary, the administrative law enforcement departments for copyright shall presume that the copyrights or copyright-related rights claimed by the complainant exist in the work, performance or audio recordings.

4. If there is no evidence to the contrary, the author, publisher, performer, or producer of audio recordings attributed in the usual fashions shall be presumed to be the work, performance, or audio recording's copyright holder, or the holder of copyright-related rights.

5. When administrative law enforcement departments for copyright presume ownership of rights in accordance with article 4 of this Notice, if the respondent is unable to submit corresponding count evidence, the complainant is not required to further submit licenses, transfer agreements, or other written evidence on copyrights or copyright-related rights to prove ownership of the rights, that permissions have been obtained, or that the respondent's behavior constitutes infringement.

II. On Evidence of Infringement

6. When complainants make complaints to the administrative law departments for copyright, the administrative law departments for copyright shall request that the complainant provide evidence that the respondent has infringed upon their copyrights or copyright-related rights.

7. The following materials submitted by complainants may be evidence showing that the works, performances, or audio recordings they claim to hold rights in have been violated: sales records of the infringed works, performances, or audio recordings; accounts, contracts, and processing or production documents involving infringement; photos, videos or screenshots of web pages proving infringement; evidence showing that publishers or reproducers fabricated or altered authorization documents, or exceeded the scope of authorizations and permissions; or other materials that can prove infringement.

III. On the Determination of Infringement

8. Where after complainants submit documents showing rights and proof of infringement, and other relevant evidence, the respondent claims that they permissions from the copyright holder or holder of copyright-related rights, they shall submit evidence that they received permission, and the administrative law enforcement departments for copyright shall conduct an investigation to verify. Where respondents cannot submit the evidence described above but the evidence at hand is sufficient to support the finding of an infringement, or where the evidence submitted by the respondents is not sufficient to show that obtained permissions, the administrative law enforcement departments for copyright shall find that the respondents' conduct constitutes and infringement.

9. Where the publishers or producers of reproductions cannot prove their lawful authorization, or where distributors of reproductions cannot prove the lawful origins of the reproduction, the administrative law enforcement departments for copyright shall find their conduct constitutes infringement.

10. Where, based on the documents showing rights and evidence of infringement submitted by the complainant, the administrative law enforcement departments for copyright can directly determine that the respondent's behavior constitutes infringement, it is not necessary to retain an evaluation body to conduct an evaluation.

11. The administrative law enforcement departments for copyright are to lawfully investigate and punish infringing conduct such as illegal dissemination of others' works using made-up or fake authorization, etc, and are to regulate unclear ownership, improper rights protection, and other such conduct in accordance with the law.

National Copyright Administration

November 15, 2020