The fourth Business of Intellectual Property Asia Forum returns to Hong Kong in early December, with the theme Intellectual Property: Powering Business Expansion.

One of the major sponsors of this year’s forum is Sisvel, an Italian IP licensing firm which has offices in Washington, London, Stuttgart, Luxembourg, Tokyo and Hong Kong.

“We are glad to participate as we have been active in Hong Kong with IP licensing for 10 years,” says Marcello Dini, chief officer for new business in the Asia-Pacific region and general manager of Sisvel Hong Kong. “The development of the economy is closely intertwined with the development of added values such as IP.”

According to Dini, who will be speaking in a breakout session on patent pools, Sisvel’s overall IP strategy aims to foster technological development and growth by ensuring research and development efforts are properly rewarded in the form of royalties to be paid to the inventor. It does this by developing and managing licensing programmes that help monetize the value of IP rights, particularly in the technology and consumer electronics sectors.

For example, Sisvel was responsible for the licensing of the valuable patents relating to the MPEG audio standards in the 1990s, a significant technological breakthrough developed by Philips, the French Centre commun d’études de télévision et télécommunications and the German Institut für Rundfunktechnik.

Dini says that Sisvel does not have a team dedicated to enforcement activities because the volume of cases is not so high as to justify it. “We usually rely on using a law firm to represent us and we provide them with support,” he says. “All our licensing and technical staff are highly skilled and capable of supporting the external consultants and law firms that are engaged.”

One of the difficulties with moving into a rapidly developing market like China is a widespread lack of awareness and understanding as to the value of IP generally, but Dini says that this situation has been improving since Sisvel came to Hong Kong in 2005.

“Big changes are already happening. The success of this BIP Asia conference is one example,” he says. “Recent licensing programs developed by Sisvel are also including Asian companies among their patent owners.”

Another challenge is dealing with legal uncertainty – courts in many emerging jurisdictions can still be inefficient or lack the experience that those in well-established legal systems do. But Dini is positive. “Change happens gradually and with small steps,” he says. “I believe the process will take time.”

As for the issue of a “race to the bottom” scenario, in which competitors try to attract more business by driving down prices, Dini is less upbeat, saying that he thinks this “will never change for consumer electronics.”

Dini says he is most excited about Sisvel’s upcoming programmes related to advanced mobile communications and networks. He is also optimistic about the months ahead. “Slow, constant change will keep happening as the general situation improves,” he says. “I think this coming year will be characterized by a high degree of sales and acquisitions of IP portfolios between Asian companies.”

The BIP Asia Forum is jointly organised by the Hong Kong government, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council and the Hong Kong Design Centre. The two-day conference will be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and will include more than 80 speakers.