On May 7, the National Copyright Administration promulgated the revised Measures for Implementation of the Administrative Punishment on Copyright Infringement (the “NEW MEASURES”), which will become effective on June 15, 2009(the “Effective Date”). The NEW MEASURES will replace the current Measures for Implementation of the Administrative Punishment on Copyright Infringement which was promulgated on July 24, 2003 (the “OLD MEASURES”). Compared with the OLD MEASURES, the NEW MEASURES are revised primarily in accordance with the Regulation on the Protection of the Information Dissemination Right on Internet and clarify the following issues: the definition of infringement on copyright, the categories of punishment, the territorial jurisdiction for copyright infringement on Internet, the emergency measures that can be taken before accepting a case and the means of obtaining evidence by the handling officers. Besides, the NEW MEASURES further clarify what kind of circumstance can be regarded “serious circumstances”. In other words, the NEW MEASURES are more precise and stringent than the OLD MEASURES especially regarding the infringement on Internet.
