Backed by Japan and Switzerland, the office of US Trade Representative Rob Portman said it had instigated a special WTO process to obtain information on China's protection of intellectual property rights (IPR).

"Based on all available information, piracy and counterfeiting remain rampant in China despite years of engagement on this issue," Portman said in a statement.

"If China believes that it is doing enough to protect intellectual property, then it should view this process as a chance to prove its case."

The US-led initiative is the first formal use of a WTO provision that allows member states to probe others on their law enforcement, judicial decisions and administrative rulings in the IPR arena.

The USTR said it expected a response from China by January 23 and would then decide on its next steps.

Washington in April threatened a formal WTO complaint against China unless it took stronger action against IPR abuses.

A US trade official said a formal complaint could still come, but that the USTR wanted to work "cooperatively" with China for now through the new WTO process.

The official, who declined to be named, said Beijing had already been informed of the WTO request, which comes after the USTR in April put China on a "Priority Watch List" of 14 countries where piracy is widespread.

"It could be that at the end of the day, China does not cooperate and/or we do not see a significant decline in copyright abuses. Then we will use all available tools at our disposal," the trade official told reporters.

"If China does not respond, that would send a very negative signal as to their willingness to cooperate on dealing with this problem," the official added. "We certainly hope they will respond."

After annual bilateral trade talks in July, US Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said China was showing "a deeper level of seriousness" on the IPR front.

On Tuesday, the US Justice Department said the first criminal case stemming from a joint US-China investigation into IPR violations had resulted in the indictment of a US citizen on charges of attempting to import pirated DVDs.

But at the same time, the US government says China should be doing a lot more to clamp down on companies and retailers that peddle fake copies of foreign products such as consumer electronics, software and luxury goods.

With Japan and Switzerland, the USTR wants China to explain what legal routes it is taking against IPR violators; how many cases have been filed, and where; and which rights holders have been infringed.

It also wants more information on the scale of the problem, to gauge whether retailers, manufacturers and distributors are all being pursued when IPR abuses are found.

The WTO move was welcomed by the US Chamber of Commerce, which urged China to "transparently document its actions" to protect foreign brands.

The Chamber hopes that China will view the requests "as an opportunity to demonstrate to the world its strong commitment to enforce IPR", said its vice president for East Asia, Myron Brilliant.

"The burden is on China to show that its promises are deterring IP (intellectual property) theft through increased prosecutions, convictions and incarcerations of violators," he said.

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