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    Religious Connations and Its Business Implications in China: The Right Side of The Law

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    payalv
    Comparative advertising can highlight the unique qualities of a product but must be carefully regulated to prevent unfair or misleading comparisons. Chinese law does not have explicit provisions governing comparative ads but does prohibit false or misleading information and require ads to follow principles of equality, fairness and ethics. Courts have found unfair competition in cases where ads made one-sided comparisons or false claims about being number one. Comparative ads must make objective comparisons based on substantiated facts without exaggeration and should fairly compare strengths and weaknesses without attacking a competitor's reputation.

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    Religious Connations and Its Business Implications in China: The Right Side of The Law

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    payalv
    31 views2 pages
    Comparative advertising can highlight the unique qualities of a product but must be carefully regulated to prevent unfair or misleading comparisons. Chinese law does not have explicit provisions governing comparative ads but does prohibit false or misleading information and require ads to follow principles of equality, fairness and ethics. Courts have found unfair competition in cases where ads made one-sided comparisons or false claims about being number one. Comparative ads must make objective comparisons based on substantiated facts without exaggeration and should fairly compare strengths and weaknesses without attacking a competitor's reputation.

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    Comparative advertising can highlight the unique qualities of a product but must be carefully regulated to prevent unfair or misleading comparisons. Chinese law does not have explicit provisions governing comparative ads but does prohibit false or misleading information and require ads to follow principles of equality, fairness and ethics. Courts have found unfair competition in cases where ads made one-sided comparisons or false claims about being number one. Comparative ads must make objective comparisons based on substantiated facts without exaggeration and should fairly compare strengths and weaknesses without attacking a competitor's reputation.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    31 views2 pages

    Religious Connations and Its Business Implications in China: The Right Side of The Law

    Uploaded by

    payalv
    Comparative advertising can highlight the unique qualities of a product but must be carefully regulated to prevent unfair or misleading comparisons. Chinese law does not have explicit provisions governing comparative ads but does prohibit false or misleading information and require ads to follow principles of equality, fairness and ethics. Courts have found unfair competition in cases where ads made one-sided comparisons or false claims about being number one. Comparative ads must make objective comparisons based on substantiated facts without exaggeration and should fairly compare strengths and weaknesses without attacking a competitor's reputation.

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    RELIGIOUS CONNATIONS AND ITS BUSINESS

    IMPLICATIONS IN CHINA

    To compare is to see the difference between two things; in the commercial


    world, the unique qualities and features of one product are often best
    demonstrated by comparing it to another. It is therefore not unusual for
    advertisers to use comparative advertisements to highlight their products’
    unique aspects. However, while such ads can enhance consumer awareness
    as well as the reputation of goods/services when properly used, they can
    also be misleading, deceptive and even disparaging towards the product
    being compared.
    For example, an advertiser may try to disadvantage a competitor’s product
    by exaggerating the superior qualities of its own and minimizing its
    shortcomings. For this reason, comparative advertising must be carefully
    regulated to prevent unfair trade practices.
    The right side of the law
    In China, there are no explicit legal provisions governing comparative
    advertising. However, various related laws reflect the standards used by the
    legislature and the judiciary to determine when comparative ads constitute
    unfair competition. The following provisions of the Unfair Competition Law
    apply to comparative ads:
    • Market operators must follow, among others, the principles of equality,
    fairness, honesty and credibility, and observe generally recognized business
    ethics.
    • Operators must not use an ad to give false or misleading information on
    the quality, composition, performance, use, manufacturer, useful life or
    origin of the goods.
    • Operators shall not design, produce or release false advertising where they
    clearly know, or should know, that such ads are false and Operators shall
    not utter or spread falsehoods to damage the goodwill of a competitor or the
    reputation of its goods.

    The Supreme People’s Court suggests that in civil unfair competition cases,
    the following shall be regarded as ‘false advertising’, this is the Unfair
    Competition Law:
    • Making one-sided advertising or comparison of the products
    • Presenting information as true to promote a product when in fact that
    information is uncertain.
    • Using idiomatic expressions with ambiguous or multiple meanings in order
    to mislead.
    Enforcement in Chinese courts
    Chinese courts have heard several cases of unfair competition arising from
    the improper use of comparative advertising, one example being Beijing
    Milan Spring Co Ltd v Beijing Paris Spring Wedding Co Ltd (First
    Intermediate Court IP First Instance, 2000). In this case, Beijing Milan
    Spring Co accused Beijing Paris Spring Wedding Co of unfair competition for
    using the slogan “No 1 in China, Area No 1, Luxury No 1, Service No 1”. The
    Beijing First Intermediate Court agreed.
    Another noteworthy case is Fujian FuQing Damin Biological Engineering Co
    Ltd (Company A) v Fuzhou Nanhaian Biological Engineering Co Ltd
    (Company B) (IP Final Instance, 2000), an unfair competition case arising
    from comparative advertising.

    An advertisement’s content must be substantiated and must not contain any


    false statements. Ads must be based on fact and make comprehensive,
    objective comparisons between one or more features of the goods/services,
    without exaggeration or fabrication.
    The principles of fair competition and good faith must be met in all
    advertising. Operators must compare the strengths and weaknesses of the
    products fairly and not take advantage of others’ famous brands. Operators
    must compete in good faith and not denigrate their competitors’ reputation.
    Using comparative advertising to attack a competitor’s reputation is business
    libel denigrating behavior not only violates the competitor’s lawful rights, but
    also damages market competition.

    Conclusion
    Comparative advertising can be a powerful but dangerous tool. However,
    operators must be very careful when using comparative advertising,
    especially when they are comparing specific products or producers.
    Advertisers must strictly examine the authenticity of the comparison to avoid
    being sued by competitors for trademark infringement or for unfair
    competition.
    On the other hand, companies that have been affected by unfair
    comparative advertisements have the right to file suit in China and, if
    successful, receive compensation.

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