Geneva  - A World Trade Organization panel said Wednesday that China's import structure for audio-visual products was not in line with the organization's rulebook and should be changed.

The case before a dispute settlement body, brought by the United States, touches on many areas, including printed material, music, films and video games.

Washington said China was controlling which companies could import audio-visual items and which ones could distribute. This raised prices and opened up the market to piracy and fakes.

The ruling means China should allow for joint American-Chinese ventures in the audio-visual products field.

US Trade Representative Ron Kirk welcomed the results, calling them a "significant victory to America's creative industries."

"These findings are an important step toward ensuring market access for legitimate US products in the Chinese market, as well as ensuring market access for US exporters and distributors of those products," Kirk said.

While Kirk called the decision a "clear win," the panel did find that certain aspects of Washington's complaint were beyond its mandate. (dpa)