China Tightens Rules on Intellectual Property

China's state media say the country has tightened rules on the theft of intellectual property by lowering the threshold for prosecuting offenders. The new rules issued Thursday by the Supreme People's Court and prosecutor's office cut by half the number of counterfeit movie, music or software discs that will qualify a producer for prison terms. Counterfeiters of 500 copies now face up to three years in prison, and those making two-thousand-500 copies are liable to terms of up to seven years.

State media also say much stiffer fines are now in place for convicted counterfeiters. On Wednesday, Xinhua news agency reported that China will begin allowing foreigners to attend trials on intellectual piracy.

中国官方媒体报导，中国通过降低对违犯知识产权者的起诉标准严格有关侵犯知识产权的条例。最高人民法院和最高人民检察院星期四公布的这些新条例，把盗版电影、音乐或软件光盘的最低判刑标准降低了一半。制作500件盗版产品者现在可判最多3年监禁，盗版2500件者可面临最多7年监禁。

中国媒体报导说，对被判犯有盗版罪的人的罚款程度也更加严厉。新华社星期三报导说，中国将开始允许外籍人士旁听有关盗取知识产权案件的审理。