Government Steps in to Co-organize Business of IP Asia Forum
10 June 2013
With an eye towards promoting Hong Kong as an intellectual property trading hub, the Special Administrative Region’s government will co-organize the 2013 Business of IP (BIP) Asia Forum with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and the Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC). This year’s forum will mark the first year the Hong Kong government has been involved as a co-organizer.
Some 98% of last year’s BIP Asia Forum attendees indicated interest to return. The 2012 event attracted more than 1,400 IP stakeholders from 23 jurisdictions – which doubled the number of the first forum in 2011. The 2013 forum will be held December 5-6. “Hong Kong has the potential to develop into a regional IP trading hub, given our outstanding business environment, robust IP protection regime, extensive investments across Asia with the Mainland as our hinterland, and experience in areas such as research and development, design, trading and business services in support of industrial production,” Gregory So, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, said in a statement.
“Since its launch two years ago, the BIP Asia Forum has enjoyed great success and has become a premier event drawing IP practitioners from all over the world. By co-organizing the event, we hope to bring this event to another level, consolidate Hong Kong’s position as an IP trading hub, and attract more IP trading activities to Hong Kong,” said So.
So added that IP has become increasingly important in a knowledge-based economy to drive innovation and growth. “The remarkable surge in the global use of IP in recent years and the increasing demand for it in the region will translate into huge opportunities,” he said.
The previous BIP Asia Forum had almost 40 speakers sharing views on topics ranging from trademarks and licensing to software copyrights, biotechnology and Chinese medicine.
Hong Kong chief executive CY Leung previously announced in his 2013 Policy Address that the government would set up a Working Group on IP to advise on the overall strategies to promote the development of Hong Kong as an IP trading hub, and to identify possible policy and other support measures to facilitate IP trading in Hong Kong. The working group is led by So and Andrew Liao, a member of the Hong Kong Executive Council, as vice-chairmen.
