Brand Protection in China in the Era of E-Commerce

The thesis analyses brand and trademark protection in China and focus on the brand protection on online marketplaces, and particularly on Alibaba Group trading platforms, such as Taobao and Tmall. In the first part of the thesis brand protection is analysed from a wide perspective, taking into consideration international treaties that guarantee the safeguard of trademarks worldwide, such as the Madrid Agreement, the TRIPS Agreement, the Paris Convention and the Nice Agreement. Then laws and regulations in China are analysed in detail, with focus on the new trademark law entered into force in 2014, the establishment of specialized IP courts, the draft of the e-commerce law and other implementations and efforts Chinese government is making to enhance protection of IP rights. The second part mainly focuses on brand protection online, with an overview on the measures that have been taken both worldwide and in China to face trademark-related issues online, and what are the methods trademark owners can use to ensure the protection of their brand on the Internet. The last part analyses the problem of counterfeit on Alibaba, the measures that Alibaba is adopting to take down trademark infringers and counterfeits on its trade platforms, and cases of famous brands that sued Alibaba for trademark infringement.