The Copyright Society of China (CSC), a public, government-tied institution under the National Copyright Administration of China, launched the China Copyright Chain on Tuesday. 

The new blockchain can document proof of digital assets, monitor infringement activities, collect evidence online, issue notices to remove piracy products and help courts settle copyright-related disputes and process lawsuits, CSC said. 

“The blockchain is great for digital copyright protection given its technical features such as immutability, source-tracing ability and distributed consensus,” Xiaohong Yan, chairman of CSC, said during a forum on innovation and copyright protection. 

China’s Supreme People’s Court recognized evidence authenticated by blockchain and considered it legally binding in September 2018.  

The Internet courts in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have started using blockchain to conduct meetings and document court records, Yuanming Qin, chief justice at the intellectual property division of China’s Supreme Court, said at the forum. 

China has faced a number of criminal infringement and piracy cases that are related to digital content. Some of the most common copyright violations involve short videos, music and online literature.  

“The blockchain can significantly reduce the cost to protect digital copyright, increase efficiency and provide new ways to collect evidence, trade digital assets and protect the rights of these copyrights’ owners,” Yan said.