WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU COMMERCE
ORGANIZACIÓN MUNDIAL DEL COMERCIOIP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
13 October 2003
(03-5382)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English/
anglais/
inglés
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
LAWS AND REGULATIONS NOTIFIED UNDER
ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT
CHINA
Revision
The present document reproduces a corrected translation of the text1 of the Regulations on Computer
Software Protection, as notified by China under Article 63.2 of the Agreement (see document IP/N/1/CHN/1).This text replaces the one distributed in document IP/N/1/CHN/C/2.
Conseil des aspects des droits de propriété
intellectuelle qui touchent au commerce
PRINCIPALES LOIS ET REGLEMENTATIONS CONSACREES A LA
PROPRIETE INTELLECTUELLE NOTIFIEES AU TITRE
DE L'ARTICLE 63:2 DE L'ACCORD
CHINE
Révision
Le présent document contient une traduction corrigée du texte1 du Règlement sur la protection des
logiciels d'ordinateur, qui a été notifié par la Chine au titre de l'article 63:2 de l'Accord (voir le document
IP/N/1/CHN/1).  Ce texte remplace celui qui a été distribué dans le document IP/N/1/CHN/C/2.
Consejo de los Aspectos de los Derechos de Propiedad
Intelectual relacionados con el Comercio
PRINCIPALES LEYES Y REGLAMENTOS DEDICADOS A LA
PROPIEDAD INTELECTUAL NOTIFICADOS EN VIRTUD
DEL PÁRRAFO 2 DEL ARTÍCULO 63 DEL ACUERDO
CHINA
Revisión
En el presente documento se reproduce una traducción revisada del texto1 de los Reglamentos sobre
protección de los soportes lógicos de ordenador, que Ch ina ha notificado en virtud de lo dispuesto en el
párrafo 2 del artículo 63 del Acuerdo (véase el documento IP/N/1/CHN/1).  El presente texto sustituye al textodistribuido en el documento IP/N/1/CHN/C/2.
                                                     
1 In English only.  The text in the original language w ill be available for consultation by interested Delegations at
the WTO Secretariat./En anglais seulement.  Les délégations intéressées pourront consulter le texte, dans sa langue d'origine,au Secrétariat de l'OMC./En inglés solamente.  Las delegaciones interesadas podrán consultar en la Secretaría de la OMC el
texto en su idioma original.IP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
Page 2
Regulations on Computers Software Protection
(Promulgated by Decree No. 339 of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China on December
20, 2001, and effective as of January 1, 2002)
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 These Regulations are formulated in accordance with the Copyright Law of the
People’s Republic of China, for the purposes of protecting the rights and interests of copyright ownersof computer software, regulating the relationship of interests generated in the development,
dissemination and use of computer software, encouraging the development and application of
computer software, and promoting the development of software industry and the informatization of
national economy.
Article 2 For the purposes of these Regulations, the term “computer software” (hereinafter
referred to as “software”) means computer programs and relevant documents.
Article 3  For the purposes of these Regulations, the following definitions apply:
(1) “computer program” means a coded instruction sequence which may be executed by devices
with information processing capabilities such as computers, or a symbolic instruction sequence or
symbolic statement sequence which may be automatically converted into a coded instruction sequence
for the purpose of obtaining certain expected results; the source program and object program  of a
computer program shall be deemed as one and the same work;
(2) “documents” means literal descriptions or charts used to describe the content, structure,
design, functional performance, historical developmen t, test results and usage, such as program design
instructions, flowcharts, and user’s manuals;
(3) “software developer” means a legal entity or other organization that actually organizes, or
directly carries out, the development of a piece of software and assumes responsibility for theaccomplished software, or a natural person who independently completes, relying on his ownconditions, the development of a piece of software and assumes responsibility therefor;
(4) “software copyright owner” means a natural person, legal entity or other organization that
enjoys software copyright in accordance with these Regulations.
Article 4 The software protected under these Regulations must be developed independently by
the developer and fixed on tangible medium.
Article 5 Chinese citizens, legal entities or other organizations enjoy, in accordance with these
Regulations, copyright in the software which they have developed, whether published or not.IP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
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Foreigners or stateless persons having software first published within the territory of the People’s
Republic of China enjoy copyright in accordance with these Regulations.
Software copyright enjoyed by foreigners or stateless persons under an agreement concluded
between China and the country to which they belong to or in which they have their habitualresidences, or, under an international treaty acceded to by China, is protected in accordance with these
Regulations.
Article 6 The protection of software copyright under these Regulations shall not extend to the
ideas, processing, operating methods, mathematical concepts or the like used in softwaredevelopment.
Article 7 A software  copyright owner may register with the software registration institution
recognized by the copyright administration department of the State Council. A registration certificateissued by the software registration institution is a preliminary proof of the registered items.
Fees shall be paid for software registration. The charging standards for software registration shall
be provided for by the copyright administration de partment of the State Council jointly with the
competent department for pricing of the State Council.
Chapter II Software Copyright
Article 8 A software copyright owner shall enjoy the following rights:
(1) the right of divulgation, that is, the right to decide whether to make the software available to
the public;
(2) the right of developer-ship, that is, the right to claim developer’s identity and to have the
developer’s name mentioned in connection with the software;
(3) the right of alteration, that is, the right to supplement or abridge the software, or to change the
sequence of instructions or statements;
(4) the right of reproduction, that is, the right to produce one or more copies of the software;(5) the right of distribution, that is, the right to provide the original copy or reproductions of the
software to the public by selling or donating;
(6) the right of rental, that is, the right to authorize others to use temporarily and onerously the
original copy or reproductions of the software, except where the software itself is not the essentialobject of the rental;
(7) the right of communication through information network, that is, the right to make the
software available to the public by wire or wireless means so that members of the public may haveaccess to the software from a place and at a time individually chosen by them;IP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
Page 4
(8) the right of translation, that is, the right to converse the natural language of the software into
another natural language; and
(9) other rights which shall be enjoyed by software copyright owners.
A software copyright owner may authorize others to exploit his copyright, and has a right to
receive remuneration.
A software copyright owner may transfer, wholly or in part, his copyright, and has a right to
receive remuneration.
Article 9 Except where otherwise provided in these Regulations, the copyright in a piece of
software belongs to its developer.
The natural person, legal entity or other organization whose name is mentioned in connection
with a piece of software shall, in the absence of proof to the contrary, will be its developer.
Article 10 Where a piece of software is developed jointly by two or more natural persons, legal
entities or other organizations, the copyright ownership shall be agreed upon in a written contractbetween the co-developers. Where, in the absence of a written contract or an explicit agreement in thecontract, the joint software can be separated into independent parts and exploited separately, each co-developer may enjoy independent copyright in the part which he has developed, but the exploitation
of such copyright shall not extend to the copyright in the joint software as a whole. Where the joint
software cannot be separated into independent parts and exploited separately, its copyright is enjoyedjointly by those co-developers and exploited by agreement. In the absence of such an agreement, anyco-developer shall not prevent, without justification, the other(s) from exploiting the copyright exceptthe right of transfer; however, the profit received for exploiting the joint software shall be reasonablyshared between all the co-developers.
Article 11 Where a piece of software is developed on commission, the copyright ownership shall
be agreed upon in a written contract between the commissioning and the commissioned parties. In the
absence of a written contract or an explicit agreement in the contract, the copyright shall be enjoyed
by the commissioned party.
Article 12 Where a piece of software is developed under a task assigned by a State organ, the
ownership and exploitation of its copyright shall be stipulated in a letter of project assignment or acontract. In the absence of an explicit stipulation in the letter of project assignment or the contract, thecopyright shall be enjoyed by the legal entity or other organization that has accepted the task.
Article 13 Where a piece of software developed by a natural person working in a legal entity or
other organization in the course of his service in volves one of the following circumstances, the
copyright therein shall be enjoyed by such legal entity or organization, which may reward the naturalperson for the development of the software:IP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
Page 5
(1) the software is developed based on the developm ent objective explicitly designated in the line
of his service duty;
(2) the software is a foreseeable or natural result of his work activities in the line of his service
duty; or
(3) the software is developed mainly with the material and technical resources of the legal entity
or other organization, such as funds, special equipment or unpublished special information, and the
legal entity or other organization assumes the responsibility therefor.
Article 14 The software copyright shall exist from the date on which its development has been
completed.
In the case of software copyright of a natural person, the term of protection shall be the lifetime
of such person and fifty years after his death, expiring on December 31 of the fiftieth year after hisdeath. In the case of a piece of joint software, the term of protection shall expire on December 31 offiftieth year after the death of the last surviving developer.    
In the case of software copyright a legal entity or other organization, the term of protection shall
be fifty years, expiring on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the first publication of such software;
however, if any such software has not been published within fifty years from the date on which itsdevelopment has been completed, it shall be no longer protected under these Regulations.
Article 15 Where software copyright belongs to a natural person, his successer(s) may, after his
death, inherit the rights provided for in Article 8 of these Regulations except the right of developer-
ship, during the term of protection provided for in these Regulations, in accordance with thesuccession Law of the People’s Republic of China.
Where software copyright belongs to a legal entity or other organization, the copyright shall,
after the change or the termination of the legal entity or other organization, be enjoyed, during the
term of protection provided for in these Regulations, by the legal entity or other organization that has
taken over the former’s rights and obligations, or, in the absence of such entity or organization, by theState.
Article 16 Owners of lawful copies of a piece of software enjoy the following rights:
(1) to install and store the software in devices with information processing capabilities, such as
computers, according to the need of their use;
(2) to make backup copies against damage, provided that such owners do not offer others in any
way the backup copies for their use and that they destroy such copies once they lose the ownership
thereof; and
(3) to make necessary alterations to the software in order to implement it in an actual environment
of computer application or to improve its functions or performance, provided that such owners do not,IP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
Page 6
except otherwise agreed in the contract, offer any third party the altered software without permission
from the software copyright owner.  
Article 17 A piece of software may be used by its installing, displaying, transmitting or storing
for the purposes of studying or researching the design ideas or principles embodied therein, withoutpermission from, and without payment of remuneration, to the software copyright owner.
Chapter III Software Copyright Licensing and Transfer
Article 18 In the case of a license to exploit software copyright, the parties shall conclude a
licensing contract.
The licensee shall not exploit any right that the software copyright owner has not expressly
granted in the contract.
Article 19 In the case of an exclusive license to exploit software copyright, the parties shall
conclude a written contract.
In the absence of a written contract or an explicit agreement upon exclusive license in the
contract, the right that the licensee is authorized to exploit shall be deemed as a non-exclusive right.
Article 20 In the case of a transfer of software copyright, the parties shall conclude a written
contract.
Article 21 Anyone that concludes an exclusive licensing contract or a transfer contract of
software copyright may register with the software registration institution recognized by the copyright
administration department of the State Council.
Article 22 A Chinese citizen, legal entity or other organization that authorizes a foreigner’s
exploiting software copyright, or transfers it to a foreigner, shall comply with the Regulations of the
People’s Republic of China on Administration of Technology Import and Export.
Chapter IV Legal Liability
Article 23 Except where otherwise provided in the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of
China or these Regulations, anyone who commits any of the following acts of infringement shall, in
light of the circumstances, bear civil liability by means of ceasing infringements, eliminating ill
effects, making an apology, or compensating for losses:
(1) to publish or register a piece of software without the authorization of the software copyright
owner;
(2) to publish or register a piece of software developed by another person as ones own;IP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
Page 7
(3) to publish, or register, a piece of joint software as developed solely by oneself , without the
authorization of the other co-developer(s);
(4) to have ones name mentioned in connection with, or alter the name on, a piece of software
developed by another person;
(5) to alter or translate a piece of software without the authorization of the software copyright
owner; or
(6) to commit other acts of infringing upon software copyright.
Article 24 Except where otherwise provided in the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of
China, these Regulations, or other laws or admi nistrative regulations, anyone who, without the
authorization of the software copyright owner, commits any of the following acts of infringement
shall, in light of the circumstances, bear civil liabi lity by means of ceasing infringements, eliminating
ill effects, making an apology, or compensating for losses; where such act also prejudices the publicinterest, the copyright administration department may order to cease infringements, confiscate illegalincome, confiscate or destroy the infringing copies, and may impose a fine concurrently; where the
circumstances are serious, the copyright administration department may confiscate the material, tools
and equipment mainly used to produce infringing copies; and where the act violates the CriminalLaw, criminal liability shall be investigated for the crime of infringing upon copyright or sellinginfringing copies in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Law:
(1) to reproduce, wholly or in part, a piece of software of the copyright owner;(2) to distribute, rent or communicate to the public through information network a piece of
software of the copyright owner;
(3) to knowingly circumvent or sabotage techno logical measures used by the copyright owner
for protecting the software copyright;
(4) to knowingly remove or alter any electronic  rights management information attached to a
copy of a piece of software; or
(5) to transfer, or authorize another person to exploit, the software copyright of the owner.
Whoever commits the act referred to in item (1) or (2) of the preceding paragraph may be
concurrently fined 100 yuan for per copy or not more than 5 times of the value of the products; and,those who commits the act referred to in item (3), (4) or (5) of the preceding paragraph may be fined
not more than 50,000 yuan concurrently.
Article 25 The compensation paid for infringing upon software copyright shall be determined in
accordance with Article 48 of the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China.
Article 26 A software copyright owner that can present evidence to prove that another person is
committing, or is to commit, an infringement wh ich, if not being prevented promptly, is likely to
cause irreparable harm to him, may, before instituting legal proceedings, apply to a people’s court, inIP/N/1/CHN/C/2/Rev.1
Page 8
accordance with Article 49 of the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China, for an order of a
stop to relevant act and for measures of property preservation.
Article 27 In order to prevent infringement, a software copyright owner may, before instituting
legal proceedings, apply to a people’s court, in accordance with Article 50 of the Copyright Law ofthe People’s Republic of China, for evidence preservation where the evidence is likely to be missing,or to be obtained difficultly later.
Article 28 A publisher or producer of copies of a piece of software that fails to prove that the
legal authorization for the publication or production, or, a distributor or renter of copies of a piece of
software that fails to prove the legal source of the copies which he distributes or rents, shall bear legalliability.
Article 29 The development of a piece of software which is similar to a pre-existing one due to a
limit of alternative forms of expression does not constitute an infringement of the copyright in the pre-existing one.
Article 30 A holder of copies of a piece of software that neither knows nor has reasonable
grounds to know that such copies are infringing ones does not bear liability of compensation but shallcease the use of, and destroy, the infringing copies. Nevertheless, if the cease of use or the destruction
of such copies is likely to cause heavy losses to him, the holder of such copies may, after paying
reasonable remuneration to the software copyright owner, continue to use such copies.
Article 31 A dispute over software copyright infringement may be settled by mediation.
A dispute over a software copyright contract may be submitted to an arbitration institution for
arbitration under an arbitration clause in the copyright contract or under a written arbitrationagreement concluded later between the parties.
Any party may institute legal proceedings directly in a people’s court in the absence of an
arbitration clause in the contract or of a written arbitration agreement concluded afterwards betweenthe parties.
Chapter V Supplementary Provisions
Article 32 Any act of infringing upon software copyright committed prior to the entry into force
of these Regulations shall be dealt with under the relevant provisions of the State that are in force atthe time when the act was committed.
Article 33 These Regulations shall be effective as of January 1, 2002. The Regulations on
Computer Software Protection promulgated by the State Council on June 4, 1991 shall be repealedsimultaneously.
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