Competition Law's Regulation Of Abuse Of Intellectual Property

Cisco Systems .Inc brought an accusation against Huawei .Inc in U.S.A in 2003 to ask the latter to stop trespassing the intellectual property of Cisco's. We cared this case more in that what Cisco really wants to do is to keep his monopoly status with the excuse of protecting his intellectual property. Abuse of intellectual property is a concept which is opposite to legitimate exertion of intellectual property. It means that the obligee goes beyond the range laws permit, which leads to the malfeasance right using. Shall we permit an enterprise with monopoly preponderant preventing new competitors entering the market depending on its intellectual property in modern market economy? This case brought abroad debate in the world, especially among the developing countries. There appeared an important task that how to use legal weapon to protect domestic corporations and prevent developed country from abusing intellectual property under the situation in which science and technology is becoming the chiefly factor in comprehensive national strength competition.Intellectual property is a typical form of combination of knowledge, economy and law. Its legal mechanism is to be the combustion-supporter, adjuster and protector to technology advancement, economy increasing and social development. As it is a right, it has possibility to be abused. The most common type of misuse occurs when the obligee uses the intellectual property to violate the antitrust laws. Because civil law lacks the ability to control big corporation abusing its intellectual property in destroying the free fair market order, we need other regulations.Competition law stands for creating a free fair market order. It includes antimonopoly law and anti-unfair competition law. Its legal value consists in protecting competition, implementing essential justice and improving social integral efficiency.Intellectual property law and competition law have the same aim in driving technical renovate and improve consumer's welfare. They are the condition for each other in the purpose of economy development. But intellectual property is the creature of absolute or limitative monopoly and competition policies are always anti-monopoly on the contrary, so there has been contradiction between the two sides. U.S.A., E.C., Japan .etc and WTO began to enact law to restrict abusing intellectual property. The Magill Case in E.C. Court and the Microsoft Case both illustrated the importance of the freedom and justice in market. According to Cisco v. Huawei, our national enterprises need competition law in particular to safeguard the fair competition as many foreign companies like Cisco have already get whip hand in global market.However, our intellectual property regulation is not optimistic. According to our existing competition legislature about intellectual property, they are scattered, disintegrable, indefinite and very limit in application. We can say that our regulation which can adapt socialism market economy development's and future information economy times' demand is still in bud. When we use foreign advanced intellectual property regulation for reference, we must recognize and research how to use competition law to protect our national economy and native market. Through the cooperation of the two sides, we can construct the arm of the law not only to inspire innovation but also to keep fair market's order.In face of the requirement what era put forward to us, we must constitute our own competition law about intellectual property; set up executive organization correctly; utilize more items to uphold our intellectual property interest; quicken the reform in administration, legislation and judicature.Legal practice from Cisco v. Huawei to Microsoft Case make it clear to all that nobody can resort to one rare right in monopolizing market share. Nowadays, market economy calls for scratch line of fair competition. Racers who own intellectual property also have to be judged by competition law. China as a developing country must perfect its legal system to cl...