Welcome Address by Ms Liew Woon Yin at ‘IPOS-INTA Asia-Pacific Forum: Emerging Issues in Brand Protection’ Cocktail Reception, at Sheraton Towers Singapore

Welcome Address by Ms Liew Woon Yin, Director-General, Intellectual Property Office of Singapore at ‘IPOS-INTA Asia-Pacific Forum: Emerging Issues in Brand Protection’ Cocktail Reception, at Sheraton Towers Singapore on 2nd Mar 2005, 6.00 p.m

Mr Bruce MacPherson,
Director of External Relations,
International Trademark Association

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

Good evening. I am delighted to be here with you this evening on this first collaboration between the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) and the International Trademark Association (INTA). Let me extend a very warm welcome to all of you, especially those who are here in Singapore for the first time.
It is indeed timely and strategic on this first collaboration that we have chosen the theme: “Emerging Issues in Brand Protection” in the Asia-Pacific context. We all know that a unique trade mark or brand is the soul of a business and helps it distinguish itself in today’s crowded business environment. Having the right brand protection strategy is a key determinant of a business’s success in the global marketplace.
The Asia-Pacific is one of the fast growing regions in the world. The Economic Intelligence Unit in its 2003 report predicted that the average growth for Asia–Pacific excluding Japan is 5.9 percent from 2003 through 2007. Analysts have identified China and India as the strongest growing Asian economies, noting IT and Services as the strongest industry drivers. In the East Asia, Korea and Japan are the two economic superpowers to contend with. Both countries have reaped mutual economic benefits from economic cooperation since 1965 and today, they are well known and accepted as the technology giants of Asia. The combined strength of China, India, Japan, Korea and the ASEAN markets, have affirmed Asia-Pacific as an attractive investment destination.
This phenomenal growth is fuelled, in no small measure, by the rapid globalisation of business and the increasing awareness and deployment of intellectual property (IP) strategies as engines for commercial and economic growth.
For Singapore, what this means is that we have to work even harder and smarter to stay competitive. More importantly, we would need to overcome the constraints of our small domestic market by increasingly venturing into overseas markets. This is where a strong IP entrepreneurial culture among our businesses is essential and they will have to start with the right brand protection strategy. They will need to understand the terrain in new markets, develop brand identities that best connect with those markets and deploy protection strategies to secure their market share.
This has been a key focus for IPOS, our sister economic agencies, Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (SPRING Singapore) and the International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore) and our industry partners, ACE & SBF in developing the business landscape here. In recent years, there has been a concerted effort to promote branding as an effective business internationalisation strategy. Over the recent years, a lot of innovative brands have evolved in Singapore. Brands like Banyan Tree, Eu Yan Sang, Old Chang Kee, BreadTalk, Ya Kun and the like, are brazing the trail and making their mark in the regional and international markets.
Having said that, a lot more needs to be done. A survey commissioned by IE Singapore in 2003 revealed that half of the 100 local companies surveyed still associated branding with the “name” or “identity” of their products. It was also found that over 60% of the small companies surveyed had vague or no branding strategies at all
Realising this educational gap in the market, IPOS has structured its outreach efforts to help businesses better harness their IP potential. There is a team of IPOS officers on the ground, proactively engaging our local businesses, walking them through the IP value chain. Invariably, the focus will be on trade marks as they are the most common form of IP assets that a company would own and through which to develop and grow.
Besides working with the businesses directly, awareness of the importance of branding is also created via IPOS’ programmes for the education sector. We have organized national trade mark competitions for schools to provide hands-on experience for these ‘entrepreneurs to be’ to get savvy with branding concepts early on. We have also introduced branding as part of the judging criteria for various business plan competitions organized by our Institutes of Higher Learning e.g. the National Technology University’s Business Plan Competition last year and the National University of Singapore Entrepreneurship Centre’s “Start-up @ Singapore” Competition 2005.
To encourage and facilitate the emergence of local promising brands, IPOS have also worked hand in hand with its sister agencies including IE Singapore and SPRING Singapore. IE Singapore, in particular, plays a lead role in grooming the local brands for the overseas market. It has augmented a large pool of resources and intelligence with the establishment of networks such as The Brand Network, Network China and Network India, dedicated to help local businesses globalise.
In addition, Singapore businesses can constantly be kept informed on the latest in branding through annual branding forums and awards ceremonies such as the Global Brand Forum, the Global Franchising and Licensing Exhibition and Conference, and the Singapore Promising Brand Awards.
This year, our businesses have more to gain with the inauguration of the IPOS-INTA Asia-Pacific Forum. For IPOS, this first time collaboration with INTA, an international renowned trade mark organisation takes our efforts to another level. You will, no doubt, benefit from the wisdom of the many international IP practitioners and business veterans gathered in our midst as we think through some of the critical and emerging issues relating to brand protection in the Asia Pacific region.
In this regard, we would like to thank INTA for co-organising this important event with us and the many speakers and participants for joining us here. Our deep appreciation also to our supporters, namely the Action Community for Entrepreneurship (ACE), International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore), Singapore Business Federation (SBF) and the Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (SPRING Singapore) for helping to make this Forum a success.
Thank you and enjoy the rest of the evening.