Survey shows public awareness of IPR low in China

BEIJING, April 25 -- Results of a recent survey show
that while Beijing and Guangdong residents have a reasonably high awareness of
the issues surrounding intellectual property rights (IPR), the majority of their
fellow countrymen know little about the question.

The general index for Chinese people's public
awareness of IPR is 42.1, a comparatively low figure, but the results vary from
region to region, with Beijing and Guangdong scoring 46.9 and 51 respectively.

The results reflect China¡¯s progress in the field of
IPR protection and the disparities between regions. Region, ethnic group,
gender, age, income and education are all factors that affect people¡¯s awareness
of IPR. The figures reflect social, economic, cultural and educational
differentiation in modern China.

The survey, which was sponsored by State Intellectual
Property Office (SIPO) and carried out by the IPR Publicity Center and the Media
Research Lab of Tsinghua University, covered 31 provinces, municipalities and
regions, excluding Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao. It took four months to complete,
and collected 15, 373 questionnaires.

Experts say the survey results may have far-reaching
implications for the effort to improve IPR protection in China.

(Source: China.org.cn)