China May Change Accreditation Criteria for ‘Indigenous Innovation Products’

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Apr. 21 – China reconsidered some criteria for its “indigenous innovation products” under Notice 618, and drafted a new notice on April 9 which should help to alleviate some concern among foreign investors over government restrictions on foreign investment on the mainland.

Jointly issued by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Finance, the new notice may remove some of the requirements of the earlier notice, including the particulars of intellectual property ownership, trademark registration and technology requirements for businesses in China. Those prior requirements were widely criticized by foreign investors as protectionism for domestic companies. The draft notice is currently open for comments until May 10, 2010.

According to Notice 618, issued on November 15 last year, China will develop a catalogue of products which will be given preference by the government when they are making purchases.

The catalogue includes the following products:

  • Computing and application hardware
  • Telecommunications products
  • Office appliances
  • Software
  • Alternative energy and equipment
  • High-efficiency energy saving products

The previous notice stipulated that products classified as innovative and of high quality must be produced by enterprises with full ownership of the intellectual property in China. It also stated that the trademarks have to be owned by Chinese companies in order to be accredited.