Reviving a bill that increases intellectual property rights in Hong Kong
At the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022, Hong Kong is trying to resurrect a bill that expands IP protections in this jurisdiction. The bill has been blocked twice before by opposition lawmakers, however, this time is different, officials are saying that it is high time the city catches up with the rest of the world in updating its copyright regime.
According to government consultation papers, the proposal was drafted based on the Copyright Bill 2014, which was shelved in 2016 after the legislation failed to pass in the Legislative Council.
At the moment, the government has announced a 3-month public consultation on a plan to revise the Copyright Ordinance, which would be presented to a newly elected Legislative Council in 2022.
In the current proposal, there are 5 main suggestions, including giving copyright owners a “technology-neutral exclusive communication right,” and adding two statutory factors “for the court to consider when assessing whether to award additional damages to copyright owners in civil cases involving infringement.”
There are also exceptions for the use of 3 purposes, including:
- Parody, satire, caricature and pastiche;
- Commenting on current events;
- Quotation of copyright works.
However, the government hasn’t given any clear definitions or details of the purposes given exceptions.
If the proposed amendments are passed through, Hong Kong will be in a better position to deal with copyright infringement in the digital environment and more importantly, catch up with the developing countries in the world, reaffirming this country’s stand on the world stage.
Currently, Hongkong’s copyright laws are outdated and these amendments come at the right place, right time.
Expert opinions
Amita Haylock, a partner, at Mayer Brown in Hong Kong stated about the amendment of Hongkong’s Copyright law: “Hong Kong’s Copyright Ordinance (“CO”) needs to be updated to keep up with advancements in technology. In an age where technological advancement outpaces legal development, the present copyright framework in Hong Kong is particularly powerless in protecting copyright owners against digital piracy as it is “outdated” and does not conform with international standards.”
Haylock adds, “The Consultation Paper also proposes the introduction of safe harbor provisions for Online Service Providers for copyright infringement on OSP platforms. To benefit, an OSP when notified of a copyright infringement must take reasonable steps to limit or stop the infringement, including reasonable steps to remove the alleged infringing work. These proposed safe harbor provisions strike a balance between protecting creative works for copyright owners and safeguarding the operations of OSPs and are important to keep the CO up to date with technological developments, in particular the internet.”
“Some of the Government’s proposal to update the CO as set out in the Consultation Paper is based on the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2014. Back then, the bill was shelved because of filibustering in the Legislative Council. As the political situation in Hong Kong has evolved since 2014 and taking into account how outdated our copyright laws are, it is probable that most of the proposals of the new amendment bill will be passed by the Legislative Council.”
The Government will prepare an amendment bill for the CO after the 3-month public consultation that ends on February 23, 2022.
***Other Articles***
– You could see Fee of Trademark in Hong Kong here
– You could visit here to see Procedure of Hong Kong Trademark Registration.
– You could visit here to check the required documents for filing trademark in Hong Kong
Contact AAA IPRIGHT: Email: [email protected]
Or sending your inquiry by filling the form:
