The "Protecting Intellectual Property" special enforcement campaign in Huaibei City, Anhui Province, has yielded significant results since its launch. The city's Market Supervision and Administration Bureau has centered its efforts on two key themes: protecting brands and safeguarding geographical indications to promote rural revitalization. By focusing on critical products, sectors, markets, and supply chain links, the bureau has intensified enforcement actions, achieving notable progress.
In the first half of this year, the market supervision system in Huaibei handled a total of 144 intellectual property cases. This included transferring 4 cases to public security authorities, investigating one major and significant case, and having one case selected among the Top 10 Typical Intellectual Property Cases by the Anhui Provincial Market Supervision Administration. These efforts have robustly upheld fair market competition and a sound environment for innovation.
The bureau has prioritized cracking down on violations concerning products vital to public health, safety, and property, including food, agricultural supplies, electronics, home appliances, auto parts, and daily consumer goods like apparel and bags. It has rigorously investigated trademark infringements and patent counterfeiting. From January to June, the authority filed and handled 130 trademark infringement cases, 8 geographical indication cases, and 4 patent counterfeiting cases.
Concentrated inspections have been carried out to combat infringement and counterfeiting in online sales and live-streaming commerce, as well as the sale of fake or imitation branded goods at temporary stalls and special promotional events. One notable case involved individuals surnamed Xiao selling clothing that infringed on exclusive registered trademark rights; this case was included in the provincial Top 10 list for 2025, serving as a powerful deterrent.
Targeting primary agricultural products, processed foods, genuine medicinal materials, and traditional handicrafts, the bureau has severely cracked down on "free-riding" behaviors such as unauthorized use of geographical indication product names and the misuse or forgery of geographical indication logos. Eight cases related to geographical indications were processed in the first six months.
To standardize practices, the bureau formulated the "Huaibei City Geographical Indication Logo Enterprise User Manual." It also facilitated the establishment of a provincial-level local standard for the protected geographical indication product "Huangli Badou Apricot" and created credit files for over 30 entities using the geographical indication logo.
During peak consumption periods like holidays, enforcement checks in rural and suburban markets were intensified to uncover networks and sources producing and selling infringing and counterfeit goods, thereby protecting the reputation and brand value of geographical indication products.
Adopting a full-chain case handling approach, the bureau strengthened cross-regional and inter-departmental collaboration. In the first half of the year, it transferred or received 24 cases across regions and departments and handled 5 patent infringement disputes. It also worked with public security, customs, and copyright authorities to investigate cross-border and organized production and sales of infringing goods, transferring 4 cases to public security organs.
Leveraging smart regulatory tools, the bureau utilized online transaction monitoring systems and the 12315 platform to gather leads on illegal activities, enabling precise enforcement actions.
The bureau integrates law enforcement with public legal education. Implementing a list for "no penalty for first-time minor violations and exemption for minor offenses," it handled 81 cases with exemptions in the first half, involving waived penalties exceeding 2 million yuan. Relying on intellectual property protection workstations and rights protection assistance agencies, it provided on-site protection at four exhibitions, inspecting over 800 products and filing two cases. It also organized special training on IP protection for party and government officials and conducted outreach activities in six types of venues, distributing more than 500 promotional materials, effectively raising public awareness of intellectual property rights.
Moving forward, the Huaibei Market Supervision and Administration Bureau plans to deepen the "Protecting Intellectual Property" campaign. Efforts will concentrate on emerging industries and specialized, sophisticated, distinctive, and innovative enterprises, with increased focus on investigating major cases. The bureau aims to improve cross-regional joint enforcement mechanisms, providing stricter law enforcement and higher-quality services to support innovation-driven development and optimize the business environment.