copyright owner stipulated in Paragraph 1 of Article 10 of the Copyright Law of
the People's Republic of China, namely "the right to make a work available to
the public by wired or wireless means so that the public can access the work at
a place and time of their choice". Based on the nature and characteristics of the
information network transmission right, once the infringement of the
information network transmission right occurs, it will lead to the result that "the
public can access the work at a place and time of their choice", and the
geographical scope involved in the infringement is uncertain. Therefore, Article
15 of the Provisions on Information Network Transmission Right stipulates that:
"civil disputes over the infringement of an information network transmission
right shall be under the jurisdiction of the people's court at the place where the
infringement is committed or where the defendant is domiciled. The place
where the infringement is committed includes the location of the equipment
such as network server and computer terminal used to commit the alleged
infringement. Where it is difficult to determine both the place where the
infringement is committed and the domicile of the defendant or they are outside
China, the location of the equipment such as computer terminal where the
infringing content is discovered by the plaintiff may be regarded as the place
where the infringement is committed." Therefore, Article 15 of the Provisions on
Information Network Transmission Right is a special provision on the jurisdiction
over civil cases concerning disputes over the infringement of an information
network transmission right, which is a specific civil right. In determining the
jurisdiction over cases concerning civil disputes over the infringement of an
information network transmission right, Article 15 of the Provisions on
Information Network Transmission Right shall be taken as the basis.
In the case, Qinhuangdao City was the domicile of the plaintiff, but not the
place where the infringement was committed or the domicile of the defendant
stipulated in Article 15 of the Provisions on Information Network Transmission
Right. The case was not involved in the exception stipulated in Article 15 of the
Provisions on Information Network Transmission Right that " it is difficult to
determine both the place where the infringement is committed and the domicile
of the defendant or they are outside China". Therefore, the Qinhuangdao
Intermediate People's Court, Hebei Province had no jurisdiction over the case,
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