HONG KONG – IP allows owners to expand their frontiers by upgrading their offering, be it goods or services, and can help them maintain their competitive edge through the use of good branding, creative content and new designs and technology, said Gregory So, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development, addressing guests at the keynote luncheon for the BIP Asia Forum today.

Whilst he doesn’t describe himself as the architect of Hong Kong’s IP Policy, So is passionate about the topic, he told guests.

Referencing Frozen and the Star Wars saga, So illustrated how IP can unlock global business. Frozen was the top licensing brand in 2014 with licensing revenues of US$1 billion, almost matching ticket sales, and the latest instalment in the Star Wars franchise started merchandise sales over 3 ½ months before the cinematic release, and is projected to earn up to US$5 billion by the end of 2016 in licensing and branding deals.

Addressing guests, So explained that innovation plays a powerful role in harnessing the power of IP. “In today’s knowledge based economy companies increasingly see IP as a valuable asset to drive innovation and growth. IP should be valued; it should be built; it should be managed and leveraged strategically to drive innovation and growth” he said.

The fact that the top three companies in the Forbes list of the top 100 brands are all technology based and IP intensive brands companies highlights the fact that investment and innovation leads to economic success, So said, commenting that that a recent Thomson Reuters report showed that the top 100 innovative companies outperformed the MSCI world index by over 6% in terms of revenue.

“If a company does not have an IP strategy, competition will reduce it to a tragedy,” So said.