Intellectual Property

Beijing authorities destroyed hundredsof pirated DVDs and software disks.It's just one of many very public attempts by Chinato show the world it's getting tough on copyright cheats.Just days earlier, the United Statescomplained to the World Trade Organizationthat piracy in China was unacceptably high.Officials here insist they are clamping

down hard on the scourge by setting their sights on thoseto make the illegal disks.Regulations released recently have lowered the thresholdfor punishing companies that violate the law.From now on, the number of cases handit over to the justice system will increase.But in downtown Beijing, a huge variety of fake goods

are still widely available at a fractionof the cost of the real thing.And many foreign governments say their markets are alsoawash with Chinese counterfeits.The US claims pirated DVDs and ...