The challenge of copyright enforcement in china's movie industry

Section II: Promoting the economic progress

From the economic point of view, improving copyright enforcement will help developing various industries by promoting a legal consumption. People will be more willing to go to the cinema than to illegally download a movie if criminal liabilities are efficient. Box office will be then really high so that it will serve well Chinese economy. As a consequence, cinema tickets could be more affordable in order to create a mass consumption.⁷⁷ Also, Chinese firms specialized in innovative productions will get benefit from an improved enforcement of IPRs laws as they will get more money if consumers purchase legally their products.⁷⁸ Improvement in copyright enforcement is dependent on clarifying censorship standards. Such an improvement will create a competitive market where commercial terms prevail so that foreign movies can be imported and independent domestic movies produced.⁷⁹ A more competitive market will attract greater foreign investments. Otherwise a lot of Chinese provinces may know a decrease in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as it was the case for Guangdong province because of its rampant IPRs infringement.⁸⁰ The importance of FDI was even emphasized by Chinese officials stating that copyright protection should be strengthened in order to attract those investments and to develop a healthy economy.⁸¹ Moreover, by effectively fighting copyright infringement the government will be able to «maintain order in the audio-visual market».⁸²

⁷⁶ Administrative regulations on audio and video products (revised in 2013), Order of the State Council of the P.R.C n°645, Article 1, Article 3.

⁷⁷ Nowadays, the average price for 2 cinema tickets is 120 Yuan which is really a lot compare to average salaries that is why China's State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) wants to plan a maximum price for film tickets.

www.shanghaiist.com/2012/01/11/mainland_chinas_ticket_costs_to_be.php (visited on the 5/11/2015)

⁷⁸ Massey Joseph, see above note 44, p.237.

⁷⁹ IIPA, 2013 Special 301, see above note 27, p.49.

⁸⁰ Cheung Gordon, see above note 28, p.43.

⁸¹ Priest Eric, see above note 26, p.821.

⁸² China Daily, Chinese Intellectual Property, Notice of the cracking down on the piracy of New Years's film, 22/03/2011

www.ipr.chinadaily.com.cn/2011-03/22/content_12207503.htm (visited on the 4/11/2015).

Section III: Promoting the social progress

From a social point of view, cracking down on piracy will serve social progress as people will be more aware of copyrights and will be more willing to respect them. It will consequently enhance the overall functioning of the rule of Law in China. For instance, it will help eradicating illegal activities such as officials' corruption.⁸³ A better assimilation of the rule of Law will promote a better social harmony. It will also provide Chinese audiences with better quality and variety of films.⁸⁴ Indeed, if China's film industry evolves into a more open market with an effective copyright protection, more producers will be willing to enter into it: consumers will then be able to access more movies. It will also create social progress because it will allow to be informed better and help consumers to gain more knowledge.⁸⁵ A more open market will also bring more freedom to Chinese citizens. Consuming foreign ideas, for example, can lead to a social emancipation due to a better awareness of fundamental rights such as freedom of speech. By being less afraid of censorship, authors could be more creative. Chinese consumers will then have access to more and more domestic movies and this will help them satisfying their consumption needs. This argument can counter balance a previous argument made in Part I stating that illegal access to movies is sometimes an expression of freedom.

China's awareness about the benefit of enhancing its copyright protection leaded it to start a massive program of reforms trying to answer as much as possible to all the inconsistencies of its Copyright law. In order to evaluate better the scope of these improvements, we will first present all the legal inconsistencies that China is facing.

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⁸³ Priest Eric, see above note 26, p.834.

⁸⁴ Ibid.

⁸⁵ Cheung Gordon, see above note 28, p.58.

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Part III: Legal inconsistency facilitating copyright infringement

As a result of legal inconsistency, the current copyright enforcement system is said to be not really `efficient'.⁸⁶ This can be explained by multiple factors.