Challenges and Responses of China's Digital Copyright Protection

Under the Framework of the CPTPP Agreement

Xingyu Cheng

and Zi Jia

2,*

International Law, East China University of Political Science and Law, Shanghai, China

Economic Law, East China University of Political Science and Law, Shanghai, China

Keywords: CPTPP, Digital Copyright Protection, China’s Legal Framework.

Abstract: China’s bid to join the CPTPP faces dual challenges in digital copyright protection and international rule

alignment. This study examines CPTPP’s stringent copyright standards against China’s legal framework,

identifying divergences in criminal thresholds, protected subject scope, and infringement compensation.

While CPTPP’s norms drive legislative upgrades, excessive protections risk judicial complexity and cultural

sector constraints. The analysis proposes a dual-path strategy, harmonizing with global rules through refined

legislation (e.g., broadening rights coverage, adopting punitive damages), while calibrating safeguards for

public access and cultural dissemination. Balancing innovation incentives and social welfare-via flexible fair

use clauses and tech-driven enforcement-could mitigate overprotection risks. Such adaptive governance

supports China’s CPTPP accession negotiations and fosters sustainable growth in digital content industries

by reconciling international compliance with domestic developmental priorities.

1 INTRODUCTION

In the digital age, the convenient dissemination of

information and the prosperity of creation coexist,

and digital copyright protection is facing brand-new

challenges. In order to integrate into the international

rule system, China applied to join the high-standard

Free Trade Agreement (CPTPP) in 2021. The

intellectual property chapter of this agreement

systematically raises the digital copyright standards

of member states through trans-TRIPS provisions

such as expanding the objects of rights, strengthening

technical protection measures, and extending the

author's death. This not only creates pressure for

institutional transformation in developing countries

but also forces them to upgrade their governance

systems.

Regarding the challenges faced by digital

CPTPP agreement, some scholars have proposed that

the scope of intellectual property objects protected by

the CPTPP is broader than that of China's Copyright

Law. They also suggest that if China takes an

inclusive stance towards the CPTPP, it might be more

Corresponding author

in line with the practical needs of applying the

intellectual property provisions of the CPTPP

(Chu,2019). Other scholars have also suggested that

in the context of applying to join the CPTPP, China

needs to further improve in aspects such as the right

to public communication, the calculation of damages

for infringement, and the initiation procedures of

border measures, in order to more closely align with

international rules. However, caution should be

exercised in terms of temporary reproduction rules,

the term of copyright protection, and the threshold for

criminal conviction (Xie,2024). In addition to

Chinese scholars, some foreign scholars have also

proposed that Japan has passed Article 24 of the

Personal Information Protection Act to set up

Security Exceptions and established a Personal

Information Protection Committee. Clarify the

interpretation boundaries of data protection and

intellectual property rights provisions (Yoshinori &

Policy Research Institute, Ministry of Finance,

Japan,2021). At the same time, regarding the content

of the UK's active participation in the CPTPP

negotiations after Brexit, some foreign scholars have

proposed that in order to meet the high standards of

the intellectual property chapter of the CPTPP, the

Cheng, X. and Jia, Z.

Challenges and Responses of China’s Digital Copyright Protection Under the Framework of the CPTPP Agreement.

DOI: 10.5220/0014385300004859

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Politics, Law, and Social Science (ICPLSS 2025), pages 499-504

ISBN: 978-989-758-785-6

499

UK has adjusted its domestic legal framework and

adopted a reference model of protecting domestic

generic drug production capacity through the

"appendix + transition period" mechanism (Collins,

2023). Regarding Vietnam's experience as a

developing country in joining the CPTPP, some

foreign scholars have proposed that Vietnam has

balanced its adaptation to international rules and

domestic development needs through the path of

"reform driving opening up and opening up

compelling reform" (Trang & Quynh, 2024).

Current research mostly focuses on the technical or

legal unidirectional analysis of digital copyright

protection, and there is a gap in the systematic

research on the institutional connection under the

framework of CPTPP. This study innovatively

constructs a multi-dimensional methodological

system, combining the quantitative analysis of

China's digital copyright judicial precedents from

2010 to 2023 to reveal the correlation mechanism

between international rules and local practices.

Through comparative studies, 12 core institutional

differences such as criminal conviction standards and

the definition of the right of communication were

discovered. Taking Japan's technological neutrality

balance principle and Vietnam's phased compliance

strategy as typical cases, the strategy spectrum of

different countries' alignment with the CPTPP was

deconstructed. Research has found that China can

implement the early Harvest Plan for priority

alignment in areas such as technical measure

compliance and cross-border law enforcement, while

reserving room for gradual reform of controversial

provisions such as the extension of copyright

protection periods. This hierarchical advancement

strategy can not only reduce the cost of institutional

transformation but also take into account the rights

and interests of creators and cultural inclusiveness,

providing a Chinese solution for global copyright

governance in the digital age. The research breaks

through the traditional one-way analysis framework

and provides decision-making references with both

theoretical depth and practical value for the CPTPP

negotiations.

2 ANALYSIS OF THE CURRENT

SITUATION OF DIGITAL

CHINA

2.1 CPTPP Intellectual Property Rules

The CPTPP agreement has established a balanced

framework for intellectual property protection and the

liberalization of digital trade, with its core feature

being a dual-track mechanism of "high standards +

flexibility". In terms of innovation incentives, the

agreement promotes the knowledge economy by

strengthening the protection of technical measures

(Article 18.68) and extending the protection period.

At the same time, it sets exceptional provisions based

on public welfare such as public health and education

to prevent the abuse of rights. Digital trade rules, by

prohibiting data localization, ensuring cross-border

data flow and the notice-and-delete mechanism, not

only safeguard the rights and interests of copyright

holders but also avoid imposing the responsibilities of

platforms.

The agreement innovatively introduces a flexible

implementation mechanism, combining the three-

step inspection standard of the Berne Convention

with a differentiated transition period, allowing

developing countries to gradually meet the standards

through a 5–15-year transition period, and supporting

the institutional transformation with technical

assistance provisions. This flexibility extends to key

areas such as technical measure protection and

network service liability, ensuring legal binding force

while reserving policy space for member states. To

enhance enforcement effectiveness, the agreement

establishes specialized law enforcement agencies and

peer review mechanisms and promotes regional legal

convergence through institutionalized supervision.

This institutional design that takes into account both

uniform standards and flexible implementation

provides a new paradigm for global intellectual

property governance in the digital economy era.

2.2

The Current Situation of Digital

The digital copyright protection model in China has

creatively constructed a governance system that

deeply integrates government leadership and market

regulation, forming a digital copyright ecosystem

with distinct Chinese characteristics. At the

government-led level, a full-chain protection

mechanism from legislation to law enforcement has

ICPLSS 2025 - International Conference on Politics, Law, and Social Science

500

been established. In terms of market mechanisms, the

enterprise has independently innovated the DRM

system and blockchain evidence storage technology,

as well as a copyright management solution for

platform autonomy.

China also has innovative measures in the protection

of online intellectual property rights. The Beijing

Internet Court adopts a full-process online trial model

and introduces virtual judges. The entire process can

be completed online. Ai-assisted trials not only

improve the efficiency of case hearings but also

enhance judicial transparency and credibility.

Furthermore, the first judicial blockchain platform in

the country, Tianping Chain, was launched. Through

hash value verification, it effectively solved the

problems of easy tampering of evidence and difficult

evidence preservation in digital copyright cases (Yu

& Sha,2024).

By combining legal empowerment with

technological empowerment, China has established a

modern protection system for traditional cultural

resources. At the legislative level, the Intangible

Cultural Heritage Law and the Copyright Law form a

complementary protection framework, and in

practice, a technical path of "digital collection +

and museum institutions, has established the Chinese

Traditional Culture Materials Database. In terms of

cross-border protection, efforts have been made to

promote the Digital Copyright Protection Alliance for

Traditional Culture along the Belt and Road,

achieving mutual recognition and protection of

cultural resources among 18 countries.

2.3 Applications and Limitations of

Digital Copyright Protection in

China

2.3.1 Deficiencies at the Legal and Policy

Levels

At present, there are no specific regulations

regulating digital publishing in our country. The law

on digital copyright protection is only mentioned in

the newly formulated Copyright Law. Moreover, the

existing laws and regulations still have flaws. The

core concepts of digital publishing are vaguely

defined, and the supporting regulations fail to clearly

define the legal scope of digital publishing in a timely

manner, resulting in blind spots in the regulation of e-

books, online literature, etc. The current digital

emerging business models and technologies on the

Internet, making it difficult to handle digital

generated content models, AI collaborative creation,

etc., the current laws lack operational norms in terms

of ownership determination and benefit distribution.

Moreover, the regulations on the liability boundaries

of network service providers are overly preceptive.

Neither a stepwise liability system has been

established, nor has the legal status of content

platforms and technology intermediaries been

effectively differentiated (Collins,2023).

2.3.2 Application and Limitations of

Technical Means in Digital Copyright

Protection

The protection of digital Copyrights is more special

than that of traditional Copyrights. It relies closely on

modern technology. However, the current digital

encryption technology still has deficiencies and is at

risk of being cracked at any time. Law enforcement

technical equipment and illegal technical means show

an asymmetric development trend. The monitoring

system has insufficient accuracy in identifying new

piracy methods such as deepfake and distributed

storage, while the annual investment in technological

upgrades accounts for a large proportion of the

industry's revenue. At present, the digital copyright

law enforcement agencies are lacking in strength, the

technical means are not advanced enough, and there

is a shortage of professional personnel and the

necessary law enforcement systems.

2.4 Challenges China Faces in Joining

the CPTPP

In the field of data governance, the CPTPP explicitly

prohibits member countries from requiring

enterprises to force the transmission of source code

and restricts the requirements for local data storage.

This directly conflicts with the data export security

assessment system stipulated by Chinese law and the

data localization requirements of critical information

infrastructure operators. More importantly, the

CPTPP requires that the rules for cross-border data

flows apply equally to all enterprises, while China's

classification management system based on national

security considerations may be regarded as

discriminatory measures. In terms of intellectual

property protection, Chapter 18 of the CPTPP has

established a protection system beyond the TRIPS

standard, which has three gaps compared with the

current system in China. First, the scope of

application of border measures is different; Second,

Challenges and Responses of China’s Digital Copyright Protection Under the Framework of the CPTPP Agreement

501

the criminal threshold standards are different; Third,

the gap in the intensity of digital copyright protection

(Cai et al.,2024).

In the global interest game with other contracting

parties, Japan, as the leading country of the CPTPP,

has advanced the CPTPP and the Indo-Pacific

Economic Framework in a coordinated manner,

forming a rule-encircling circle around China. It has

restricted cooperation with China in key

technological fields through economic security

legislation. Hinder or delay the progress of China's

entry into the CPTPP (Yoshinori & Policy Research

Institute, Ministry of Finance, Japan, 2021). The UK's

accession to the CPTPP has promoted the upgrading

of digital trade rules. Coupled with geopolitical

factors such as Ukraine, it may add political

thresholds for China's access. The United States uses

the non-market economy clause of the USMCA to

form an institutional barrier and strengthen systemic

exclusion of China.

China is confronted with three structural

contradictions in the alignment of digital economy

rules: The first is the conflict between the human

creation principle of the CPTPP and the copyright

innovation of AI-generated content in China; The

second is the contradiction between the mandatory

requirements for algorithm transparency and the

domestic filing system and guided supervision. The

third difference is in the governance of the metaverse.

These contradictions not only reflect the ideological

differences between digital technology sovereignty

and trade liberalization but also expose the challenges

of China's adaptability to high-standard international

rules in cutting-edge fields such as the confirmation

of rights to new digital assets and algorithmic

governance.

3 CHINA'S RESPONSE TO

DIGITAL COPYRIGHT

PROTECTION UNDER THE

FRAMEWORK OF THE CPTPP

AGREEMENT

3.1 Experience References for

Countries outside the Region to

Join the CPTPP

CPTPP encompasses comprehensive and high-

standard intellectual property rights provisions and

incorporates countries at different levels of

development. This agreement has been in effect since

2019. As of December 2023, the CPTPP has a total of

12 member countries. The United Nations (2022)

classified it into developed countries and developing

countries (Cai et al.,2024).

3.1.1 The Essentials of Japan's Legislative

Techniques as a Leading Country

As the leading country, Japan has introduced a

sufficiency decision mechanism by amending the

Personal Information Protection Act, allowing for the

free transfer of data to countries that meet standards

equivalent to those of Japan. This mechanism not

only meets the requirements of CPTPP’s Digital trade

chapter for open data flow but also provides

underlying support for intellectual property

protection. In terms of the protection of trade secrets,

strict restrictions are imposed on the implementation

of industrial espionage through cross-border data

transmission. For instance, enterprises are required to

establish trade secret management systems that

comply with international standards. Prevent the

leakage of technical secrets (Yoshinori & Policy

Research Institute, Ministry of Finance, Japan,2021).

Japan internalizes the CPTPP rules through a

three-tier mechanism of legislation-amendment-

interpretation. Before the CPTPP comes into effect,

the Patent Law should be revised to introduce a drug

patent linkage system, ensuring that the approval of

generic drugs is linked to the patent status and

avoiding the risk of patent invalidation due to data

leakage. In response to the data localization

restrictions of the CPTPP, a security exception is set

through Article 24 of the Personal Information

Protection Act, allowing data to be restricted from

leaving the country based on national security. At the

same time, the compliance path is refined through

supplementary rules, such as requirements for

encrypted transmission. Establish the "Personal

Information Protection Committee" (PPC), release

the CPTPP Implementation Guidelines, clarify the

interpretation boundaries of data protection and

intellectual property provisions, such as defining the

electronic storage standards for trade secrets.

3.1.2 Experience Exploration of the United

Kingdom's Successful Accession to the

CPTPP Agreement

Immediately after Brexit, the UK initiated

negotiations to join the CPTPP and became the first

country to officially apply to join the CPTPP (Garcia,

2024). The intellectual property chapter of the CPTPP

is regarded as the gold standard, covering all aspects

such as patents, Copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets,

ICPLSS 2025 - International Conference on Politics, Law, and Social Science

502

and digital environmental protection. To meet the

requirements of the CPTPP, the UK has proactively

adjusted its domestic policies after Brexit and

gradually moved closer to the high standards of the

CPTPP. For instance, it has revised the Copyright Act

Strengthen the crackdown on streaming media piracy

and digital content infringement. The Digital

Economy Act is passed to strengthen the

responsibility of platforms and require network

service providers to proactively block infringing

content. These reforms not only comply with the rules

of the CPTPP but also promote the enhancement of

the competitiveness of the UK's digital creative

industries and the biomedicine sector. China can draw

on this model, take the CPTPP as an opportunity to

build a global biomedical innovation highland, and at

the same time protect its domestic generic drug

production capacity through the "appendix +

transition period" mechanism (Collins,2023).

3.1.3 Vietnam's Experience as a Reference

for Emerging Economies

Vietnam, a developing country, is usually at the

medium to low end in global intellectual property

protection assessments. (World Intellectual Property

Organization data,2023) However, in order to fulfill

its obligations under the CPTPP agreement, Vietnam

has carried out extensive revisions to its intellectual

property laws (Cai et al.,2024). Over the past few

decades, Vietnam has been committed to joining

international treaties related to intellectual property

rights, formulating its own legislation, and aligning it

with international norms. In 1949, Vietnam joined the

Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial

Property and the Madrid Agreement for international

trademark registration (Hoang & Hoan,2019).

Through the path of reform, driving opening up and

opening up compelling reform, it has provided

important experience in balancing the adaptation of

international rules and domestic development needs.

The reform of Vietnam's intellectual property law is

characterized by a phased and coordinated strategy,

implemented through different steps and

mechanisms. In response to the high standards of the

CPTPP, Vietnam has revised its Intellectual Property

Law, extending the patent protection period for drugs

to five years, establishing a patent linkage system,

and setting up an Intellectual Property Rapid

Protection Center to shorten the trial period for

infringement cases to six months (Trang &

Quynh,2024). Meanwhile, Vietnam provides

intellectual property subsidies to small and medium-

sized enterprises and offers patent application fee

reductions to labor-intensive small and medium-sized

enterprises in industries such as textiles and

electronics.

Under high-standard intellectual property rules,

developing countries can achieve a dynamic balance

between protection and development by formulating

reasonable strategies. China should fully draw on its

flexibility and pragmatism, explore a development-

oriented intellectual property governance model

within the framework of the CPTPP, fulfill

international obligations while reserving strategic

space for domestic innovation, and ultimately

promote the evolution of the global intellectual

property system towards a more fair and inclusive

direction.

3.2 Specific Measures for China's

Digital Copyright Protection Under

the Framework of the CPTPP

Agreements

China needs to accelerate the reform of its intellectual

property legal system to align with the rules of the

CPTPP. In the field of copyright, the principle of no

hierarchy protection should be established, the legal

effect of technical measures such as digital

watermarking and DRM should be strengthened, and

temporary reproduction should be included in the

scope of rights. Clarify the responsibility boundaries

of the online platform and establish a notice-and-

delete mechanism compatible with Article 18.82 of

the CPTPP. In the field of patents, it is necessary to

extend the protection period of drug patents, optimize

the examination process, and establish a patent

linkage system. Special regulations should be

formulated for new business forms such as AI-

generated content and virtual assets in the metaverse

to clarify the rules of ownership.

Establish a digital copyright innovation platform in

the free trade zone and conduct stress tests on cross-

border data flow. Focus on breaking through

independently controllable copyright protection

technologies and reduce reliance on foreign open-

source technologies. Build an AI-based cross-border

data monitoring system to achieve data flow

visualization and risk early warning. Implement a

special plan for digital copyright talents, attract high-

end talents in fields such as big data and algorithms

through tax incentives, and enhance the independent

rate of core technologies (Li&Chen,2024).

Establish a digital copyright law enforcement

collaboration network among CPTPP member

countries and improve cross-border investigation,

electronic evidence collection and other processes. In

Challenges and Responses of China’s Digital Copyright Protection Under the Framework of the CPTPP Agreement

503

accordance with the transparency requirements of the

agreement, law enforcement reports should be

released regularly and an information sharing

platform should be established. Strengthen the

professional ability training for law enforcement

officers in digital forensics, algorithm analysis, etc.

Balance the contradiction between the security

assessment of data export and the provisions on the

free flow of data through the regulatory sandbox pilot

program.

4 CONCLUSION

This study focuses on the impact of digital copyright

protection under the CPTPP framework on China and

the response paths. By comprehensively applying

methods such as literature analysis and case

comparison, it reveals three major challenges: First,

the expanded scope of copyright (such as technical

measures, rights management information, etc.) and

strict enforcement standards stipulated in the

agreement have an institutional gap with the current

laws in China, which may exacerbate the judicial

application predicament. Secondly, the requirements

for algorithm transparency and cross-border data flow

in digital trade rules form deep conflicts with the

domestic algorithm filing system and data security

assessment mechanism. Thirdly, emerging fields

such as the confirmation of rights to digital assets in

the metaverse and the protection of AI-generated

content highlight the contradiction between the

international rule of "human creationism" and China's

technological practices.

Based on the comparison of the institutional

practices of CPTPP member countries, this study

proposes a three-stage response strategy. At the

legislative level, it is necessary to construct a

hierarchical copyright protection system, incorporate

temporary copying, digital watermarking, etc. into the

regulatory scope, establish a CPTPP compatible

notify-delete mechanism, and clarify the ownership

rules of AI content and virtual assets through special

legislation; At the technical level, efforts should be

made to strengthen the research and development of

technologies such as blockchain rights confirmation

and smart contracts, build a cross-border data flow

monitoring system, and reduce reliance on foreign

technologies. In terms of international cooperation, it

is necessary to establish a digital copyright law

enforcement collaboration network, improve the

cross-border electronic evidence collection

mechanism, and explore the balanced path between

data security and free flow by using the regulatory

sandbox. The research emphasizes that in the process

of aligning with the CPTPP, China must innovate its

institutional design - not only to carry out gradual

reforms through stress tests in free trade zones, but

also to maintain its sovereignty over digital

technologies, ultimately achieving a dynamic balance

between the localization of international rules and the

development of the digital industry. This path not

only provides a solution for joining the CPTPP

negotiations but also contributes Chinese wisdom to

global digital copyright governance.

AUTHORS CONTRIBUTION

All the authors contributed equally and their names

were listed in alphabetical order.

REFERENCES

Cai, X. et al. 2024. Commonality and affordability of

intellectual property rules in mega FTAs: A CPTPP

perspective. International Journal of Criminal Justice

Sciences 19(1): 532-551.

Chu, T. 2019. Analysis of international intellectual property

rules under the framework of giant free trade agreements

and China's countermeasures. International Economic

and Trade Exploration 9: 80-95.

Collins, D.A. 2023. The UK’s accession to the

Comprehensive Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership

(CPTPP): Legal obligations and political economy.

International Trade Law and Regulation 29(1): 44-64.

Garcia, M. 2024. Transcending geography: The United

Kingdom’s accession to the Comprehensive and

Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership. Geopolitics

Taylor & Francis: 1-24.

Hoang, N.H. & Hoan, T.Q. 2019. Vietnam and the CPTPP:

Achievements and challenges. ISSRS YUSOF ISHAK

INSTITUTE.41: 2335-6677.

Li, M. & Chen, Y. 2024. Reflections on the Legal Issues of

Applying CPTPP Intellectual Property in China.

International Trade (7): 86-96.

Trang, N.M. & Quynh, N.P. 2024. Vietnam’s compliance

with international IP agreements. The International

Journal of Business Management and Technology 8(5).

Xie, W. 2024. From TRIPS to CPTPP: Improvement of

international standards for copyright protection and its

enlightenment to China. China-Arab Science and

Technology Forum (in Chinese and English) 2: 147-151.

Yoshinori, A. & Policy Research Institute, Ministry of

Finance, Japan. 2021. Data localization measures and

international economic law: How do WTO and

TPP/CPTPP disciplines apply to these measures. Public

Policy Review 16(5): 1-29.

Challenges and coping strategies. Law 12(1): 303-311.

ICPLSS 2025 - International Conference on Politics, Law, and Social Science

504