Dr Li Yu Guang,
Deputy Commissioner, State Intellectual Property Office, People’s Republic of China
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen
Good morning,
1. Welcome to the 3rd China-Singapore Intellectual Property Conference. To our colleagues from China, a very warm welcome to Singapore.
2. Let me say that I am very pleased to be here today to deliver the opening address at this year’s conference. The annual conference is testimony to the strong bilateral cooperation between China and Singapore in the field of intellectual property. It is a relationship that has grown from strength to strength since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China and the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore in 2004.
3. The 2006 and 2007 conferences were successfully held in Singapore and Beijing against the backdrop of strong global growth and a buoyant regional economic outlook. Prospects were good then. Unfortunately, today we meet under very different circumstances. In the months leading up to this conference, we have witnessed the collapse of established financial institutions, falling exports, sharp rise in unemployment and a growing global credit crunch. The economic and financial crisis that is still unfolding before us has even prompted some observers to label the current situation as the “worst crisis of the century”.
4. As we grapple with the effect of a severe economic downturn, many of you here would be asking: what do all these mean for intellectual property and how can it help my business in these difficult times? No doubt the current economic climate would have already prompted many companies to tighten spending to encourage operational efficiency, and choose its short-term investments more carefully. Dampened economic sentiment might also reduce opportunities for licensing and franchising opportunities in many overseas markets. At the same time, it might even translate to smaller R&D budgets to support innovation, and a reduction in available venture capital and other external sources of funding. With depressed market outlook and severely restricted credit access, some companies might postpone IP acquisition, which in itself can be a costly process.
5. Without question, the far-reaching impact of the current financial turmoil will certainly generate some negative ramifications for the intellectual property sector. But just like in any enterprise and in any crisis, we hope that IP professionals and investors can look for the silver lining. Simply put, innovation is essential to economic growth. Current economic upheavals do not change the fact that today’s markets are increasingly globalized, that intellectual property will continue to give companies the competitive edge in their products and services, and that companies need to compete ever more aggressively to remain relevant in the global value chain. We therefore urge companies to look beyond present economic difficulties and identify an appropriate IP strategy that can continue supporting innovation-based activities to better help them exploit the technology commercially when the economic conditions pick up. It is understandable that businesses focus on short-term survival during downtimes, but it is equally important that they do not lose sight on positioning themselves to take advantage of new opportunities and reaping the rewards of innovation down the road.
6. Even in the worst of times, there will still be sources of growth and stability which offer opportunities for IP-savvy companies. Notwithstanding China’s slowing exports and growth rates, Singapore is confident that the strength of China’s economy can enable it to play that role. China has recently announced a huge economic stimulus plan amounting to US$586 billion to be injected into its economy over the next two years. This is the largest economic stimulus package ever announced by the Chinese government and one that is aimed at bolstering the economic stability across various sectors, including in the area of technological innovation. The new spending, with US$18 billion scheduled for the last quarter of this year, should come as good news for companies and foreign investors seeking new opportunities.
7. In fact, Singapore and China had just concluded a bilateral Free Trade Agreement last month. The FTA is more than just a boost our excellent bilateral trade and investment relations. In the light of the worsening global downturn, the Agreement has come at a crucial time and with that, enhanced opportunities for Singapore companies seeking enhanced access to the vast Chinese market. China is one of the largest and fastest growing markets in the world, and China-Singapore trade climbed to a record US$62 billion last year. China is Singapore’s third-largest trade partner and largest investment destination, while Singapore is China’s eighth-largest trading partner.
8. As bilateral economic ties between Singapore and China strengthen, we must also constantly look at new ways at boost IP collaboration to ensure that intellectual property can continue to promote trade and investment flows. At the heart of bilateral cooperation in the intellectual property field is bringing together our IP professionals, research communities and other IP stakeholders to network and exchange knowledge on developments in our respective IP landscapes, local business conditions and opportunities for joint ventures, licensing and franchising. I believe that the series of annual IP conferences has provided excellent opportunities towards these objectives.
9. I am confident that China and Singapore IP cooperation will continue to grow in tandem with our growing economic linkages. In May year, China-Singapore IP collaboration registered another milestone with the successful launch of the SIPO Helpdesk initiative. This was an important initiative aimed at bringing our respective IP markets closer to one another. The team of SIPO officials conducted several events in Singapore to help Singapore’s businesses and IP stakeholders navigate China’s patent and design landscape, develop the right IP contacts and pursue IP-savvy strategies to maximize opportunities in China.
10. There remains a lot more that can be done to enrich IP cooperation between China and Singapore beyond annual IP conferences and the Helpdesk initiative. IPOS is keen to continue working with SIPO to expand cooperation into other areas that can promote greater sharing through leveraging of each other’s expertise and strengths, thereby collectively raising the understanding of each other’s IP landscape for the benefit of our business and IP professionals. This can take the form of more training workshops, visits and exchange of information resources.
11. With that, it leaves to express my thanks to Deputy Commissioner Li and his SIPO team in partnering us to bring this conference into its third successful year and for SIPO’s longstanding commitment in concretizing bilateral IP collaboration between China and Singapore. I would also like to wish you all a very fruitful conference ahead.
12. Thank you.