Table of contents
- Quick nav
China Software Copyright (软著): Screenshots for Identification Materials
Two different kinds of "screenshots"
If you are an overseas team entering China, search queries around 软件著作权鉴别材料截图 (software copyright identification-material screenshots) are easy to confuse with store listing art:
| Purpose | Audience | Goal | Reuse as store art? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 软著 identification materials | Registration body / filing packet | Prove the software and its docs/UI exist | No — not marketing frames |
| Store listing screenshots | App Store / China Android users | Conversion + listing compliance | Must follow each store's size and ad rules |
This article covers filing screenshots for 软著. After you hold the certificate, aligning names and store assets is a separate checklist: soft copyright to store listing materials.
What the packet usually contains
In practice (always follow the current official guide / agent checklist):
- Program identification materials: contiguous source pages (often on the order of ~30 pages from the start and end — confirm current rules).
- Document identification materials: user manual or design spec, usually with UI screenshots + step text so an examiner can follow the features you claim.
Folk numbers like "100 screenshots" are not a universal statutory quota. Cover the main flows by module; do not pad.
How to capture UI for identification docs
Goal
An examiner should understand: what the product is called, where the main entry points are, and how a key task is completed step by step. Think manual illustrations, not ASO first frames.
Suggested chapter order
- Login / launch (if you have accounts)
- Home / primary navigation
- Core features (3–8): for each, entry → input/action → result (2–3 frames minimum)
- Settings / About (show software name + version matching the application form)
- Admin / console screens if the product includes a back office
Capture rules
- Use a runnable build, not empty wireframes
- Keep name and version consistent with the application form
- Redact PII (phones, IDs, chat contents)
- Stay on one platform theme in sequence
- Clarity matters more than App Store 6.9 marketing crops
Pair figures with steps
3.2 Create a task
Step 1: Tap Create on Home — see Figure 3-1
Step 2: Enter title and due date — see Figure 3-2
Step 3: Save and open detail — see Figure 3-3
| Practice | Tip |
|---|---|
| Captions | Numbered, searchable ("Figure 3-1 Create entry") |
| Callouts | Light arrows OK; avoid graffiti overlays |
| Multi-platform | State "Android client shown below" if you ship multiple clients |
| AI-written manuals | Expect scrutiny — rewrite in your product's voice |
Count and layout myths
| Myth | Safer approach |
|---|---|
| Must hit 100 UI images | Small tools often need ~15–40 illustrative shots if flows are complete |
| Add store-style hero headlines | No "Download now" / ranking claims in identification art |
| Logo splash only | Must show operable UI |
| Watermarks or competitor UI | Ownership and authenticity risk |
If the product has almost no GUI (SDK / CLI), provide runtime output, config UI, or call samples per the guide — do not fabricate a fake consumer app shell.
Keep store creatives separate
| Item | 软著 docs | Store screenshots |
|---|---|---|
| Tone | Manual | Benefit + compliance |
| Size | Readable | Exact slot pixels |
| Device frames | Usually unnecessary | Per store rules |
| Permission dialogs | May show real flow | See privacy/permission screenshot compliance |
Archive as ruanzhu-docs/ vs store-screenshots/ so ASO masters never land in the PDF packet by mistake.
Pre-submit checklist
- Frames tell a complete primary path
- On-screen name/version match the form and About screen
- PII redacted
- Numbered figures referenced from the body text
- No competitor UI / unlicensed assets
- No marketing store frames mixed into the identification PDF
Working with a China agent
If you hire a 软著 agent, send them:
- A runnable build or screen recording of the main path
- About-screen shots showing name + version
- A folder of raw UI captures (no ASO captions)
- Redaction notes for any PII
Ask explicitly for the document identification outline they will file, and refuse packets that only contain store marketing PNGs. Your job is product truth; theirs is formatting to the current template.
Naming files so agents do not remix your store kit
Use boring, ordered names:
01-home.png, 02-create-entry.png, 03-create-form.png, …
Avoid hero-aso-1.png or Chinese marketing titles in the filename. Agents under deadline will grab the prettiest folder they see; make the identification folder unmistakably dull and complete.
Takeaway
For China software copyright identification materials, screenshots exist to prove and explain the product, not to convert installs. Cover real flows, caption them like a manual, and keep that packet separate from App Store / China market creatives so listing review does not fight your filing packet.