The Shanghai World Expo is a global gathering place for fresh ideas, inventions and creations, and serves as an important forum for the exchange of innovation - which must be fully protected, said Lu Guoqiang, deputy director general of the Shanghai Intellectual Property Administration.

"We should give the greatest respect to the exhibits and performances, and fulfill our international commitments to strengthen intellectual property protection for all the participating countries and organizations," Lu said.

Expo organizers have placed intellectual property rights (IPR) at the top of their agenda.

A service center staffed by the legal affairs department of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination opened a few days ago to offer consultancy services to Expo exhibitors and help solve IPR-related disputes.

If complex IPR violations arise, experts from the government and professional lawyers will be invited in, said Huang Jianzhi, deputy director general of the bureau.

"In this way, we can both capitalize on all-around resources for IPR protection," Huang said.
The city also started a service hotline, 12330, to deal with complaints about infringement on exhibitor IPRs. 
                                                                                                 Source: China Daily