[JURIST] The US Trade Representative [official website] on Friday said the office had placed China on a "priority watch list" due to what the US considers rampant copyright infringement in the country. China was at the center of the US trade office's annual report on intellectual property rights, with the report concluding [China review results, PDF] that infringement in China remained "unacceptably high," despite efforts by the Chinese government to crack down. Acting Trade Representative Peter Allgeier said that despite China's efforts, the US was considering taking the issue to the World Trade Organization [official website], which is the first time the US has threatened such action on the issue. The report found mixed results in worldwide efforts to set up legal protections for intellectual property rights. Read the Trade Representative's press release, as well as the full report [PDF text] and an executive summary [PDF text]. AFP has more.